NLIS 3
May 18, 2000
(Forest Resources and Agrifoods)

Minister discourages removal of moose calves

Don�t remove moose calves from their natural surroundings. That was the warning issued today by the minister responsible for wildlife in Newfoundland and Labrador, Kevin Aylward.

The minister said every year wildlife officials have to deal with the problem of people removing moose calves from the woods. "In the vast majority of cases people have good intentions when they bring moose calves out of the woods. Unfortunately, their desire to help nature in these instances is usually misplaced."

Aylward encourages the public to leave these animals alone. Only if a calf is obviously injured, or if there is a certainty that the mother is dead, is there any reason to intervene. This basic rule should just not be applied to moose calves but to other wildlife species as well.

"If people remove a calf which appears to be abandoned because its mother is off feeding - or because a disturbance from people caused the mother to move a short distance away - they are putting themselves in considerable danger," said Aylward. "A mother moose, sensing that her calf is threatened, may attack and cause considerable injury to someone. You are not helping the moose at all by taking them away from their natural surroundings. It is in the best interest of the animal to leave them where they are found."

Many calves taken from the woods end up at the Salmonier Nature Park each year which requires considerable effort and uses up valuable resources. Even though the park has developed considerable expertise in hand raising calves, the resources to deal with them in any significant number are very limited. Furthermore, even if they are successfully raised, the problem of what to do with them still exists. Like most zoos and wildlife parks in Canada, Salmonier doesn�t need any more moose and only a few of these facilities are suitably equipped and staffed to handle moose. A recent survey of Canadian zoos has determined that there is little interest by other facilities in receiving calves this year.

Releasing a calf back to the wild is usually inappropriate because the animal�s ability to survive is compromised. Hand rearing makes an animal quite tame and it is likely it would end up being a nuisance or a risk to cause a highway accident.

Media contact: John Blake, Manager (acting), or Mac Pitcher, Animal Curator, Salmonier Nature Park, (709) 729-6974.

2000 05 19                                                         10:35 a.m.