There have been a number of moose sightings in southern Saskatchewan this week which has sparked a buzz online.
On Thursday a moose had to be tranquilized in downtown Regina and relocated and one was spotted taking a swim in Wascana Lake on Monday.
Teri Fikowski caught up with Rob Tether, a wildlife biologist with the Ministry of Environment to discuss recent moose behaviour.
Q: There’s been a number of moose sighting in southern Saskatchewan this week, in Regina and rural parts of the province. Is this uncommon or typical for this time of year?
A: What’s likely happening right now is that young moose, yearlings, are dispersing from their mother’s home range, their own home range, and what happens typically from mid June and July is they’ll show up in cities and towns as they are dispersing. It seems to be a regular phenomenon happening this time of year, each year.
Q: Have we seen any change in moose population in southern Saskatchewan in recent years?
A: Well, over the last 30 years have seen a gradual increase in the moose population in southern Saskatchewan and the farmland area and around 2010/2012 is when they peaked and now they stabilized. (That’s) mostly due to opportunities during hunting seasons that were initiated in 2010, so the numbers are still relatively high and people will continue to see them.
Q: Is there any challenges with more moose? I’m imaging troubles for farmers?
A: There’s always a challenge when a large animal like a moose is down in agricultural Saskatchewan. Typically it (means) more fences for ranchers and there’s of course always the public safety concern with moose crossing highways with vehicles travelling at high speeds.
Q: There was a moose spotted in Wascana Lake on Monday, and whether it was the same one or not, one had to be tranquilized and relocated on Thursday. Are these just rare incidents in the city or something we may be seeing more of?
A: I think each of the cities, Regina and Saskatoon, probably have two to four moose that show up each year and it’s typically this time of year. We’re trying to manage that by reducing the moose numbers close to the city but now the things we don’t know is how far are these young moose dispersing. They could be moving 50 kilometers and we don’t know where they are coming from
Q: There’s a video circulating online of a moose and three calves near Moosomin, which I’m told is quite uncommon?
Three calves with one cow anywhere in Saskatchewan is pretty awesome to see
A: Yes that actually is quite unusual! Twins in the farmland are becoming more of a regular site but three calves with one cow anywhere in Saskatchewan is pretty awesome to see for the folks that did see that. You don’t see that very often.
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