Moose on the Loose!

Even though the land for the WSU Arboretum and Botanical Gardens was only established in January, 2008, the 95-acre landscape harbors enough habitat to host some surprising wildlife visitors. This winter, we were pleased to see a moose (Alces alces) spend a month or more in the area, sometimes wandering through the Experimental Forest and other tree plantings in the Arboretum.

The heavy snowfall this winter probably drove some moose down from nearby Moscow Mountain and out into what historically would have been Palouse Prairie grasslands around the farmland and city of Pullman, Washington. While our colleagues in the WSU Tukey Orchard are none too happy to see a moose browsing on their fruit trees, the tree plantings on the Arboretum site and the adjacent Steffen Center are able to withstand a little moose taste-testing without too much damage.

Either one very adventurous moose, or more likely, a number of different moose were seen around the Pullman area this winter. Once every few years, a moose decides to come down from Moscow Mountain and visit the Arboretum site. About six years ago, a cow and her calf spent part of the winter resting in tree-covered slopes in the Arboretum. Ever since then, we've wondered if the occasional young moose visiting in winter is one of her calves.

Warning: Now that spring has arrived, moose will head back into the woods around Moscow, Idaho. However, if you happen to see one of these large, magificant animals around Pullman or the Arboretum, please do not approach them. Moose can be aggressive and dangerous, especially if they feel threatened by your approach or if a cow has a calf to protect. So stay away, and please note, that the above, greatly enlarged photo of the moose on the edge of the Arboretum was taken with a 12X telephoto lens from the safety of a vehicle on a road.