Deciding whether you must hunt for a record bull elk, or if a nice tasty cow elk will do, will influence how and, possibly, where you hunt. For his first years of hunting moose in alaska, bob had pointed himself toward the kotzebue area, where many hunters have searched and found a record breaking alaskan bull moose, but bob had recently been introduced to hunting moose in the brooks range. Nature is as an open book to the man who can read the signs of the woods and. Both bull and cow elk have a distinctive lightcolored rump patch. The usually solitary bulls may come together at this time to battle with their antlers for mating supremacy. Imagine a line drawn along the inside of the track. Moose calves on the other hand are quite a bit smaller. Ive followed many hot elk tracks hither and yon, only to find a moose at the end of the rainbow. During this period the bulls are active searching for cows and bulls typically mate with several cows.
Stuff to think about before you shoot cute moosies. Cows will leave the herd for about a week to bear their calves. I am taking my 9 yr old son with me out in the field this weekend and we were discussing the differences in cow vs. I always have a great problem in finding the difference between a bull and a cow. Mar 25, 2018 when they first saw elk, the early settlers thought the animals were moose, so they called them elk which is a british word for moose. Moose tracks by mary casanova goodreads share book. Alaskan cow moose have reddishbrown faces, while the bulls have black faces. A mature male moose is called a bull, a mature female a cow, and an immature. Even more easy if it is a cow calf operation the big moo cow tracks will be with the little moo cow. How to identify moose tracks gone outdoors your adventure. In a set of tracks it will be the longer, wider tracks, usually with a bit more curve and, in good conditions, more definition between the hoof and the pad. It was a moose, a big moose, whose palms were filled with snow. Bull moose consignment consign your cd, lp book, or dvd at bull moose thanks for considering selling your work through bull moose. Jan 24, 2015 i will have to try taking pictures of some tracks to see if they are different enough for me to tell the difference between them.
Set in the wilds of northern minnesota, moose tracks is a book many rural minnesotan students will instantly relate to. It will probably take a while since i am not in moose country very often and during winter when they are plowing through deep snow they dont leave much of a track. As the largest members of the deer family, mature bull moose create tracks that are at least 6 inches long. An adult female moose is a cow, and an adult male moose is a bull. The external features of the animal indicated mixed parentage, though overall it was more like a cow than a moose. Mary casanova books for young readers moose tracks. They are not quite as big as moose tracks but definitely bigger than deer tracks. A moose in its second year of life is a yearling and is considered an adult moose under ontarios selective harvest system. Bull moose will be much larger than cow moose and will appear blockier. Of course, if youre close enough to see a moose s sexual organs, you can determine whether the moose is a bull or a cow. The females bridge is light brown and there is no contrast with the forehead. We tell our gang to look for a dull,dark russet color as opposed to jet black like an adult,small short nose,no bell and usually,no more than 5 at the head. Ive heard that you can tell a bull track from a cow track because bulls leave a extra spike point behind their track and cows dont. Anatomy differences allow you to distinguish between a cow and a bull by examining their tracks.
Moose tracks is a story that came from my love of the northwoods. Moose tracks largely resemble the tracks made by other members of the deer family the simplest way to identify them is by measuring the size of the tracks. Meet the generally gentle giant that is surprisingly fleet of foot. According to most hunters, the elk often leave a three inch wide and four inch long print while moose leave deeper and larger tracks. Our moose hunting tips book is written with not just the novice in mind, there. Often, especially during the fall, when a train would chug down the tracks, a bull moose would charge the train and sadly, get killed. Moose have long faces and muzzles that dangle over. Being part of the same deer family, it is difficult for most people to identify an elk from a typical moose. The moose north america or elk eurasia, alces alces, is a member of the new world deer subfamily and is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Cow moose have lightbrown faces, whereas bulls have black or darkbrown muzzles. Guys, i got into a discussion with a friend of mine the other day while moose hunting near peak pond about bull moose and cow moose tracks. The mother, a dairy cow on a farm located a few miles north of duluth, minnesota, apparently mated in the fields with a bull moose. Moose tracks tend to run a bit bigger and more pointed than elk tracks, all else equal.
Males are immediately recognizable by their huge antlers, which can spread 6 feet from end to end. I was just thinking that it might be helpful to some newold elk hunters to be able to identify a cow elk track from a bull how to you tell the difference when you didnt see what made it. The best advice, then, is to quit cow calling once the bull has announced his presence. Elk tracks are more rounded than moose or deer tracks. Bull moose tracks i am taking my 9 yr old son with me out in the field this weekend and we were discussing the differences in cow vs. And because the moose is the largest division and the more popular specie of the two, some may not be aware of the existence of the elk. Beartrackers animal tracks coloring book, tshirts, sweatshirts. Finally, the old bull put his head down, william emptied his scope of snow and took the shot. In my experience a front track length of around 7 in a walking track, undistorted by speed or soft ground, will be a bull if youre talking about shiras moose. But that may be a little too close for comfort, as moose can travel up to 35 miles per hour and give little warning before attacking. Because cow moose or female deer give birth they have a wider pelvic girdle than males. We have been selling recordings and videos by local artists since 1989.
Keep in mind that the bull moose we had and our bison lived in the same pen, because they grew up together and were great friends. Tracking moose is a popular tactic, light, soft snow is ideal both for seeing the tracks and. I for one have heard many times, that if the tracks had the 2 starts or depressions showing, it was a bull moose. The moose bull the male moose is larger than the cow moose the female and has antlers. Difference between moose and elk difference between.
Any legally killed elk in wild elk habitat is an accomplishment to be respected. Males can be ornery during and after their mating season. Top five list of moose hunting tips red lake, ontario. How to identify elk tracks gone outdoors your adventure. Moose tracks what do tracks from a moose look like. I told him the differences, as in cows are more rounded and bulls are more pointed and often show the dew claw marking. Here is a top five list of moose hunting tips, and some 2015 moose hunt pictures from another great season of our remote ontario flyin moose hunt packages. Here are the five top lessons ive learned in moose school. My 5 and 6 year old kindergarteners love all of the bear books bear snores on and they were so excited when this new book arrived. A better way to tell the difference between a bull and cow moose track is through the following observation. How do you tell the difference between a cow and a bull.
Cows also have a white patch of fur beneath their tail, which bulls do not have. Some say that the bull has a longer nose than the cow. Difference between bull and cow skulls posted by larry bartlett on feb 25 2004 you can tell the difference between a cow and bull skull by inspecting the area above the eye socket and below the ear canal. They really had fun listening to the fun rhymes about all of the visitors who left behind various messes and quickly joined in to the repeating question who made all these moose tracks. After seth witnesses them slaughter a moose cow, he is desperate to save her calf. Difference between bull and cow skulls the alaska hunting forum. How to tell the difference between black and white crappies. A cow moose skull has a shorter space here than a bull skull, which is extended on a bull to accomodate antler growth.
Tell me how to indentify a moose as bull, cow or calf. The moose north america or elk eurasia, alces alces, is a member of the new world deer. Seth is a young boy who wants to prove himself to be brave. Therefore it stands to reason the rear leg spread the distance between the legs will be wider than that of a male. Six steps that will lead you to the bull at the end of the trail. Elk tracks are longer and more robust than those of deer.
There are 400,000 moose in sweden before the hunting season, 100,000 are hunted so that about 300,000. There are a number of ways to distinguish between an adult, a yearling and a calf moose. Bulls can stand as tall as five feet at the shoulders. I will have to try taking pictures of some tracks to see if they are. That means you can book now and change your mind later. Books for young readers moose tracks mary casanova. How to distinguish between a cow and a bull moose sciencing. Every year several moose are mistakenly shot and killed by hunters who do not take the time to differentiate between the obvious differences between the two big game species. The moose moved ever so slightly and disappeared from view. Look closely at the tracks, cow is different than a bull and size or weight does not matter. Discover how moose are at equally at home on land and in water.
The way i tell if youre following a bull or cow is a bull usually drags his feet more that a cow from one step to another. Spots that splay out in an oval shape between the front and hind legs indicate a bull. How to tell the difference between a cow and a bull. Compare this to a beef cow track you can see the difference. A lone track can be a bull or a cow, but if its a bull of any size, youll see where his. Both the elk and moose species are usually hunted for their meat and antlers. Dec 08, 2015 finally with a fantastic summer and fall gone we are finding time to send out an update. Unfortunately, she had no interest in a handicap bull. They inhabit most of alaska and can grow to a huge size of 1600 pounds. We pride ourselves on exceptional customer service, good selection, low prices, and, also, some of our employees know how to juggle. The hoof of the bull is bulkier than that of the cow, and should therefore. The earliest inspiration came from my grandpa eric, an old railroad man in northern minnesota, who used to tell me stories about moose. If they are directly between the tracks made by the hind legs, they are probably made by a cow. The project gutenbergs ebook of tracks and tracking, by josef.
Elk tracks are kind of a mix of deer and elk tracks. Therefore, most hunters are able to distinguish between the elk and moose by examining their tracks. Oct 23, 2017 two moose alaska a bull moose walked up my driveway following a cow moose. The bull was 250 yards away, but every time william put the scope on him, the massive antlers were covered the bull s vitals. Moose are distinguished by the broad, palmate openhand shaped antlers of the males. This bull was previously injure in a fight, after napping for 3hrs, a cow came along. Oct 05, 2017 this bull was previously injure in a fight, after napping for 3hrs, a cow came along. Facts about moose wildsweden wildlife adventures in sweden. It can be difficult to determine which is a bull or a cow after the bull has dropped his antlers, you should have no problem in knowing if the moose is a calf as it will be considerably smaller in size and usually the ones i see are more brown and have a shorter nose and have yet to darken up. But in such a case, if there are two bulls, should i treat the bull that has a shorter nose as a cow. When tracking a moose in the snow, look for urine spots.
A record breaking alaskan bull moose harvesting a giant in. If the field is a plains, we can assume the bison is a plains bison, which are bigger than the woods bison. As for the bull the only way would be to look between its legs lol just kidding, if it were me and i was on the track of a moose, one thing you could do is find where it has urinated and that should tell you if it is a bull or cow, especially if there is snow on the ground, a bull will urinate between its legs with the urine traveling ahead. When moose calf tracks are viewed beside a cow moose track it is easy to see that a calf is a much smaller animal than its mother. Cow and calf identification ontario out of doors magazine. Its not always so simple as big moose little moose shoot the little moose calves can stay with the cow for up to 2 years. They do appear rounded and have a curve to the front of the print but not as sharp as deer tracks. Elk tracks have empty space between the track and the imaginary line.
He has been begging his stepfather to take him out into the woods and so he could see what his job of game warden is like, but he is continuously told it is too. The penalties are severe for taking a moose without a license, even if it was by accident. The cow, on the other hand, has a shock of white hair on her hindquarters that the male moose doesnt. Bull moose has 12 store locations in maine and new hampshire. By comparison, elk tracks are only about 4 inches long, and deer tracks are about 3 inches long.