What’s killing Minnesota moose? Researchers launch new effort to find out
January 4, 2013 at 8:33 am in Duluth News Tribune
Moose have been dying across Northeastern Minnesota at a disturbing rate in recent years, and researchers still don’t know why. But starting in a few days, researchers will put GPS collars and satellite phone transmitters on 100 adult moose to find out exactly when and where they die. Continue Reading
What’s killing our moose? Prolly harassment from the DNR putting collars on them…that and the 25,000 wolves we have in St. Louis County.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Are more being taken under the premise of “Treaty” hunting rights?
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The whitetail deer is non-native to NE Minn and are partly responsible for driving the Woodland Caribou out of the State by introducing a parasite that is fatal to Caribou and Moose.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Umm. The deer walked here from down the road. They weren’t introduced. They are native. They might eat your flowers but they are native.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Yep, they are native to this area. They may not have always been here, but they were not introduced by man.
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What’s killing the moose? Well, one cause that I can point to that doesn’t need a scientific study – are humans with guns. To fund a study to try to preserve the moose population while still allowing moose hunts just illustrates the ridiculous nature of government. We want to save the moose, yet, we like the $$ coming in from the moose hunt so let’s not get rid of that.
I understand that the moose hunt is probably not the major causal factor (and I can’t wait for all the hunters to hoot and holler about my presumed liberal nature and taking away their hunt)…but it is a factor. To try to preserve a population on one hand, but to continue to allow people to reduce it for the purposes of pleasure seems downright stupid in my opinion. My thoughts are…stop the moose hunt, then do a study to preserve the moose to find why they are dying. If the moose are declining at such a rate as the article states, then wouldn’t any method or means to preserve the moose be beneficial at this point? Hopefully we can find the cause before it reduces to nothing so in the long term when a healthy population returns then bring back the moose hunt. Yet, we (Americans in general in my opinion) look at the short term and want the benefits now without taking into account the longterm effects. Look at the fiscal nature of our society, we don’t want to sacrifice our means of living now with higher taxes and less entitlement or spending so we piss away our future by borrowing more money. Same thing can be said about this.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Reading science stores in popular media for many years I’ve noticed this – the story is never “here’s what we found out.” It’s always pure speculation.
We will be studying…
We think it may be that….
We are looking into….
We think we may soon discover…..
Is this me being negative? I don’t know. It’s just an observation.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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It’s not negative …. it’s just you being real.
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Well, honestly that’s just science. The basic process is come up with an idea, create an experiment to test the idea, if the experiment contradicts the idea come up with another idea and start over. If the experiment is consistent, you now have a theory and you can look for other experiments that might potentially falsify it.
If the researchers knew the answer it wouldn’t be worth researching now would it.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
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Some day I’d like to open the paper and read a story that begins:
Scientists have completed their research, published their findings, and here’s what they found out.
But you never see that story and I don’t know why.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Says the guy typing on a computer that was designed using knowledge gathered by scientists and that is constantly being improved through discoveries made by scientists. Who, by the way, is probably only alive right now because of some scientific breakthrough that allowed his very existence.
There is always something to learn about this world, that is what makes it great. Why would you want to quit learning about yourself, your origin and what you can do to solve the great problems in this world?
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Oops, hit submit prior to finishing that.
Anyhow, they do provide those papers. You just don’t read them.
http://www.nova.edu/library/dils/lessons/cambridge/
http://thomsonreuters.com/products_services/science/science_products/a-z/
Among others.
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I didn’t say anything about science, scientists, or the pursuit of science. I was commenting on the coverage of science in popular media.
Your response to me was a total non sequitur.
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The moose hunt might be a very small factor but the amount of moose shot every year is minimal compared to wolf kills. I’m really hoping they find a solution so they can continue the moose hunt otherwise the day will come where they will have to shut it down until the numbers are right. I urge people to put in for a moose license because every year the tree huggers are pushing to take away the moose hunt because that’s the easiest thing to point the finger at.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Actually, it has been proven that wolves weed out pathogens from the moose herd by picking off sick moose, suffering from parasites and malnutrition, before they can spread parasites or diseases to other members of the herd. You know, the relationship that exists between prey and predator that folks, other than tree huggers, mostly hunters, constantly want to mess with.
So, actually wolves preying on sickly moose is a benefit to the herd, whereas hunters with their high-powered rifles, can kill healthier specimens, which doesn’t do the herd any good.
And it especially doesn’t benefit the herd when the DNR, in their wealth of wisdom (NOT!) allow the moose hunt when moose numbers are inexplicably declining!!
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Marry me, Olivia.
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This may be an indelicate question, but since they’re going to get these animals out of the woods rapidly after they die so they’ll still be fresh… well, umm, who gets the meat?
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You can get in line way ahead of me, especially if they died of disease or the wolves have already eaten the hams and loins. Road kill, yup I’ll take that.
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The DNR started studying the decline of moose quite a while ago now and have come up with no answers for the millions of dollars invested. Why does anyone feel that throwing more money at the DNR for further moose studies will produce anything tangible?
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The moose are vegetarians and are dying. The wolves are meat eaters and are thriving. Wow, I think I’ve come up with a couple of subjects for more useless DNR busy work.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I guess when moose survived and thrived the previous 10,000 years with wolves they were meat-eaters.
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Smartimus, surely you understand the difference between correlation and causation. In any case, your tea-party spin on every little story is tiresome. Unfortunately for you, most people recognize that there is value in scientific research. If people didn’t do this kind of work, wildlife of all sorts could go extinct very quickly as has happened in many other countries and regions. You accept (and probably enjoy) your surroundings as they are here in the northland, but you ignore and even insult the people and processes that make it possible.
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People make nature possible? I thought the left figured we don’t belong here.
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Not nature, smart guy, but there is an endangered species list for a reason. If neglectful people such as yourself had their way, there would be a fraction of the species in existence that we have today. I’ve been to places that don’t have any wild animals larger than a rabbit. That’s why there are things like hunting limits. Honestly… sometimes I feel like people are paid to be so clueless and arrogant.
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How much are you being paid Merv? I’ve done a fair amount of volunteer work aimed at enhancing habitat in my lifetime. How about you, or is your contribution mostly whining?
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Why is it that every time somebody disagrees with a republican, they’re labeled a “whiner”? You started this whole thing by whining about the DNR.
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The DNR has already studied the moose die off for quite a few years with zero results. That sure is ample reason to throw more money at it? In most of the state there isn’t any moose left to study. I know in leftist circles questioning the waste of money is considered whining.
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I can only assume from your response Merv that you contribute nothing.
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What are the morality rates elsewhere..?
Canada, Alaska, Michigan..?
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I don’t know, but I hear morality rates have gone all to he** in California.
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I’m no rocket scientist, but I know that moose happen to be a cold weather animal. And the last few years have been warmer than average. Perhaps there’s causation?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Moose_distribution.png
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The Moose pop. is expanding its range and growing in #s in N.Dak. N.D. has more Moose habitat than Mn. when you consider the 100,000s of waterfowl wetlands that are shallow enough for Moose to feed in + the fact that the grain fields they feed on more numerous than Mn. I see Moose standing in Sunflower fields eating. The heat index is also lower in a drier climate.
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The people at the top in the DNR, operating out of their glass palaces in St. Paul and elsewhere in the state, are out of touch with what the real needs are around the state. I think the people that are the most competent that should be making the decisions are the people working out in the field that see day to day what is going on.
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Glass palaces? Wow. You can really paint a mental picture, can’t you? Unfortunately, the only people in glass palaces are the super-rich who profit off the environmental degradation which threatens the existence of wild species like the moose.
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Have you ever visited a DNR regional office, Brainerd for example? There is a tremendous amount of wasted space. The people in the field do the work but unfortunately their views on wildlife management are often ignored.
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Thanks for your support of my expertise. I did field work out of the Brainerd DNR office this year. Which one were you- the seasonal tech boasting about running over wolves?
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I see now why the DNR has been in such disarray.
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