Heavy Snowfall Causing Moose Aggression

January 21, 2012|By Dan Fiorucci | Channel 2 News

Anchorage, AK — Heavy snowfall is causing a spike in aggression with moose in the valley.

An elderly man in Willow is recovering from serious injuries he suffered in a moose-stomping Friday evening.

George Murphy, 83, was injured when a moose chased after his dogs and he ended-up in the middle of the melee.

The attack came on the same day that another man in the Mat-Su Valley was forced to shoot a moose after it started attacking his pet dogs.

Wildlife officials say that moose are stressed by this winter's heavy snowfall. The snow has buried plant life that they depend upon for food so they're moving into communities and onto roadways in search of forage.

As a result, the number of moose-vehicle collisions is spiking. So far this winter, there have been about 270 instances of moose being hit by cars in the Mat-Su Valley. It usually takes an entire winter for that many moose to be hit by cars -- and this winter season isn't even half over.

The last time there was such a large spike in moose-vehicle collisions was back in 1989 -- when the snowfall was also unusually heavy. Wildlife officials are advising people to drive slowly and with caution. With the winter darkness it's easy to drive beyond the range of your headlights.

If you're a pedestrian who comes across a moose, you should give the animal a wide berth. When moose are hungry and stressed they can be unpredictable and aggressive.

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