Our World

Moose in Waite Park

This morning, a moose was found walking along side Highway 23 by Menards in Waite Park. The police were called to try and stop the moose to get it to leave the city and reutrn to a more natural habitat.

Hearing this has caused me to think about why a moose would wander into the city. First, I am pretty sure that it is rare for us to see a moose this far south in Minnesota anyway, but in a city? What would cause that. I think it is yet another example of human-environment interaction. The main reason for seeing wild animals in the city is that we are taking over the rest of their natural habitat, and they have no where else to go. It's not just happening here either. This past summer I went on a vacation to Alaska, and in the 10 days I was there, I saw 14 moose. I saw 6 of the moose in Anchorage, the state's largest city. Yes, Alaska has a much larger moose population, but it still made me wonder why a moose and its calf would cross a 4-lane highway (yes, I saw this happen). Each year 500-1000 moose are killed on Alaskan Roads. I think we need to take more action to prevent occurances like this. There needs to be more land protected and preserved for all wildlife to live, safe from the dangers of the city.

posted by Anonymous @ 10/05/2006 10:05:00 PM