Elk is rightfully considered the most beautiful large animal in the forest. Usually, representatives of this species grow up to two - two and a half meters in height, while the weight reaches six hundred kilograms. Although biologists divide moose into several subspecies, non-specialists are unlikely to notice the differences between moose of the Canadian, Asian and European subspecies. What do these forest beauties eat?
Eating moose during hot months
In the summer, these horned beauties have to be nocturnal. Like humans, moose dislike blood-sucking insects. And it is from midges and mosquitoes that moose hide during the day, standing up to their necks in lakes or rivers (sometimes even in mud), and at night they go out to get enough. However, even during the daytime in the nearby waters, moose nibble on coastal vegetation and algae due to their ability to hold their breath. By the way, in order to get drunk, the moose has to kneel down. After all, his neck and long legs are too short to be able to get drunk in the usual way.
As already mentioned, moose suffer from blood-sucking insects. How far are they willing to go to get rid of them? It turns out that in search of a young spruce forest or dense undergrowth, in the shade of which you can wait out the heat and escape from insects, moose are ready to walk a fairly long distance, or even swim two kilometers.
The plant foods that elk absorb include bark, needles, leaves, and shoots. As you understand, this diet is not able to fully provide this large animal with all the necessary trace elements. The biggest problem that moose suffer from is the lack of salt. That is why you can often see moose on salt licks - there they lick the ground, filling their body with this necessary mineral. In winter, moose often go out on the road for the same reason - they know that the necessary saline solution can be found on major highways. To prevent possible accidents due to a meeting of a person with a moose, foresters often lay out compressed cubes of salt in the winter forest and add salt to the feed, also left in the thicket.
Autumn diet
In autumn, moose go out for mushroom hunting. Most often, moose eat spongy mushrooms - porcini, boletus and mushrooms. Also, moose often eat fly agarics, because mushroom poison does not work on these majestic animals. In autumn, berries are added to the diet of moose - blueberries, lingonberries, blackberries and raspberries. Before the onset of cold weather, moose try to feed hard in order to increase body fat. It so happens that in summer, adults eat over thirty kilograms of feed, and in winter - a maximum of fifteen.
Winter feeding
It turns out that the most favorable time for moose is summer. Moose living in the tundra feed on mosses and lichens. Taiga moose eat fireweed, sorrel, young shoots and thick grass, water lilies. And what remains for a moose for the winter? What kind of forced diet does he switch to because of the drop in temperature?
If moose live in areas where the snow is low, then they continue to lead a sedentary lifestyle. They hide from the cold in coniferous forests, where they find food for themselves. For example, spruce, fir or pine are their favorite treats during the winter frost.
If moose have to live in areas where the snow cover is high, they migrate to warmer areas, where there is a possibility of shoveling off snow to eat the bark, and the branches do not freeze.
