Moose

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A male moose in Yellowstone National Park.
A male moose in Yellowstone National Park.
Where moose live (marked red).
Where moose live (marked red).

A moose (Alces alces) (called elk in Europe) is a mammal of the deer family.

A male moose is called bull, a female moose is called cow, and a young moose is called calf. A group of moose is called a herd.

The plural of moose is moose (such as: There was one moose in the forest / There were two moose in the forest.).

Contents

[edit] Appearance

Moose are about 3 meters long and about 2 meters / 6.5 feet tall. Males usually weigh about 500 kilograms / 1,100 pounds, and females weigh about 400 kilograms / 880 pounds.

The Moose has a fur colored between reddish-brown and blackish-brown. In winter, their fur becomes a grayish color. Moose have a flap of skin hanging from the throat, which is called "bell". Male moose have large antlers. These antlers fall off before winter. In the spring the antlers grow back again. Female moose do not have antlers.

[edit] Habitat

Moose live in northern Europe and Asia, and in North America. Moose usually live in areas with lakes and swamps.

[edit] Life

A female moose and her calf.
A female moose and her calf.

Moose are active during the day. They live alone, but in winter they sometimes form small groups. Moose eat grass, leaves, twigs, willow, birch and maple shoots and water plants.

After a pregnancy of 9 months the female gives birth to 1 or 2 babies. Females begin to have babies when they are 2 or 3 years old. Young moose stay with their mother for a year; after one year they leave and live alone. Moose usually become 15 years old, but they can become up to 27 years old. A mother moose will aggressively protect her young.

[edit] Moose and humans

Moose have been hunted by humans for a very long time, since the Stone Age.

Moose are sometimes hit by cars because, since they are dark colored, they are hard to see when they are crossing roads at night.

[edit] Links

Look up Alces in Wikispecies, a directory of species


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