Big Moose Attack


Ice Hole

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The next update should have Big Moose added to the roster of deadly animals.

 

Where specifically do you think you will encounter Big Moose for the first time?

My encounter will be at Mystery Lake Western Access.

What will be your primary focus of activity?

Collecting sticks.

Will you survive the encounter and how does it end?

Yes. My character probably would not have a bow, gun or rifle so by running away.  .

 

My real life encounter with a moose happened during a cross country ski run in January.  The trail was Edwards Creek and just as the forest ended then turned into marsh I spotted what looked like a young female.  Distance between us was around hundred metre and she was at the edge of the marsh as well.  I stayed on trail without making too much direct eye contact and just maintained stride.  The moose (let's call her Daisy) kept her gaze on me and neither flinched.  Thrilled my adrenaline kicked and my pace quickened and the encounter was brisk.  It seemed to me that Daisy could easily catch up to me. The trail went across an open flat marsh of cattails so I focused on the forest ahead and continued my stride.  Realizing now how lucky of an encounter this was.  I had no idea how dangerous these majestic beauties could be.


Moose Fun Facts

  • Moose live on the margins of lakes, muskegs and streams of the boreal forest, on the rocky, wooded hillsides
  • Taller than a horse -- 5 to 6.5 feet tall (1.5 to 2.0 meters) from ground to shoulder.
  • Heavier than a bear -- male moose, called bulls, weigh up to 1,500 pounds (680 kilograms).
  • Faster than a kangaroo -- moose run up to 35 miles per hour (56 kilometers per hour).
  • Moose are powerful swimmers, sometimes diving 5.5 metres or more for plants at the bottom of a lake.
  • They attack more people annually than bears do, and they are especially aggressive when defending a calf
  • Anchorage-area state wildlife biologist Jessy Coltrane "Assume every moose is a serial killer standing in the middle of the trail with a loaded gun."
  • a Glacier National Park rangers said "wild moose are more dangerous than grizzly bears."
  • attacks spikes in September and October during mating season and the early spring when mothers are protecting their young calves.
  • feeding a moose can also make them more dangerous

    Why Wild Moose Attack

Moose attacks generally occur in two seasons and for two reasons:

  1. Early Summer with Calves – Moose mommas (or cow moose) are likely to have their calves alongside them during this time of year. If you come between a cow and it’s calf, you are in trouble
  2. Fall and Mating – Bull moose are highly aggressive in the fall when courting cows. If you encounter a bull moose during mating season, it may perceive you as a mating threat and ward you off by attacking

How to Survive a Moose Attack

Remember, a moose charges to ward off potential threats. Wild moose are aggressive, but by assuring the bull or cow that you are not a threat, you can survive an aggressive moose encounter.

Signs of an aggressive moose include:

  • Walking in your direction
  • Stomping its feet
  • Peeling its ears back
  • Grunting
  • Throwing its head back and forth

Should you encounter an aggressive, wild moose, here is how to prevent and survive an attack:

  • Back away with your palms facing the moose
  • Speak softly and reassuringly, like you would to a little child
  • If the moose charges, get behind a large tree or rock in order to separate your body from the moose. Most moose charges, like grizzly bear charges, are bluffs
  • If the moose attacks you, feign death by curling up in a little ball. Protect your head and neck with your arms. If you are wearing a backpack, your pack will protect your back

 

http://www.glacier-national-park-travel-guide.com/moose-attack.html

http://www.hww.ca/en/wildlife/mammals/moose.html

https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/animal-facts-moose

http://animals.howstuffworks.com/animal-facts/dangerous-moose1.htm

http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/photos/15-cute-animals-that-could-kill-you/moose

 

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Good PSA :D

One thing to note when comparing the number of moose attacks vs bear attacks is that part of the reason for this is that there are a more moose than there are bears--so the chances of a human-moose encounter tend to be greater as well.  I'm curious whether your source has actual numbers to back up their claim... I'm not disputing it-- I'm just curious is all.

The risk is a bit overstated by the Alaskan biologist you quoted (he/she was trying to raise people's awareness that they can be dangerous at all... likely targeting tourists who are unfamiliar with them and might try getting a selfie up close with one :))... As with bears, the vast majority of encounters end before the human even notices the encounter, or just sees the rear end of the moose disappearing into the woods.  Don't get me wrong, caution is always required.  I've been charged by a cow moose, but never a bear.

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7 hours ago, toebar said:

The risk is a bit overstated by the Alaskan biologist you quoted (he/she was trying to raise people's awareness that they can be dangerous at all... likely targeting tourists who are unfamiliar with them and might try getting a selfie up close with one :))... As with bears, the vast majority of encounters end before the human even notices the encounter, or just sees the rear end of the moose disappearing into the woods.  Don't get me wrong, caution is always required.  I've been charged by a cow moose, but never a bear.

Ditto except for the being charged part. I've only ever encountered moose on their own so they've always ran away since they didn't have a cow to defend.

When moose are added to the game it'd be hard to say how they should best behave. You don't want them slowly moving like bears since they'd be too easy to hunt. But in the winter they're also at their least aggressive so they'd likely always just flee the player. While moose can certainly be dangerous I don't want them to behave like wolves or bears since they're not wolves or bears.

Regardless, it will be interesting to see what Hinterlands comes up with for moose behaviour in game.

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2 hours ago, cekivi said:

When moose are added to the game it'd be hard to say how they should best behave.

The moose that is depicted in the Hinterland Video is a bull with a seasoned rack.  That big boy seems to be in his mating time. 

  • Fall and Mating – Bull moose are highly aggressive in the fall when courting cows. If you encounter a bull moose during mating season, it may perceive you as a mating threat and ward you off by attacking

Based on this I am willing to bet that TLD Moose will not be the kiss and tell type.

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8 minutes ago, Farrgin Ice Hole said:

The moose that is depicted in the Hinterland Video is a bull with a seasoned rack.  That big boy seems to be in his mating time. 

  • Fall and Mating – Bull moose are highly aggressive in the fall when courting cows. If you encounter a bull moose during mating season, it may perceive you as a mating threat and ward you off by attacking

Based on this I am willing to bet that TLD Moose will not be the kiss and tell type.

That goes back to the thorny issue of what time did the cataclysm take place. The presence of ice huts and frozen sea ice would normally indicate winter so it'd be well past the fall rut. The other difficulty is unless Moose are made impervious to head shots having meals on hooves come to you may make it way too easy to get food given the relatively large target a moose would present. I'm fine with moose defending themselves... but I know them far better as a wily animal apt at avoiding humans altogether if it can.

Personally, I'd much prefer the moose to be able to take down a lone wolf* (if wolf packs ever become a thing) and have a very context sensitive detection radius so the only way to hunt them is to either surprise them (which may result in a trampling) or stalking them from downwind and freezing when the moose is facing you until you can get into range to fire.

*This is just so you can't herd moose into wolves to have them take down the moose for you

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So similar to deer. They also attack people under the "right" circumstances. Just search youtube and you will find quite a few videos of attacking deer/boar.

On 3/2/2017 at 5:02 AM, Farrgin Ice Hole said:

sometimes diving 5.5 metres or more for plants

Now that is interesting. I never would have thought that they would intentionally put their head fully into the water.

I'm a city guy, what do I know about wild life? :)

18 hours ago, toebar said:

The risk is a bit overstated by the Alaskan biologist you quoted

Yes, he/she probably exaggerated the risk quite a bit. But the higher chance of human-moose attack doesn't sound too far off. Think about what your reaction would be if you see one IRL. I guess it might be something like "Oh sweet!", whereas your reaction when seeing a bear would be more like "Oh s***!" with a sudden increase of your own speed (i.e. run away).

9 hours ago, cekivi said:

I'd much prefer the moose to be able to take down a lone wolf

So instead of easy moose meat, we should get easy wolf meat? :)

Like deer, moose should get collision detection. Currently, if you place yourself in the path of a spooked/injured deer, you can shoot it. And if that shot doesn't kill it, the deer will run right through your character. You won't get any injuries from that collision.

So if a deer runs into the direction of a wolf, there should be a chance that the wolf gets spooked and steps aside some distance. If the wolf then decides to attack that deer, there should be a good chance that it doesn't manage to drag the deer to the ground (Wolves aren't lions after all; no big teeth/claws to hold on to a prey). Maybe even let a deer injure a wolf if his attack fails.

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6 hours ago, tentacles said:

Yes, he/she probably exaggerated the risk quite a bit. But the higher chance of human-moose attack doesn't sound too far off. Think about what your reaction would be if you see one IRL. I guess it might be something like "Oh sweet!", whereas your reaction when seeing a bear would be more like "Oh s***!" with a sudden increase of your own speed (i.e. run away).

lol.   This is one of the main things you should not do when you see a bear, especially if the bear is not already running away from you-- 

remember.... prey runs away.    (And, you cannot outrun a bear.)

I've seen plenty of bears and moose IRL.  My reaction to both depends on the circumstances (primarily the distance between us! :) ). The one time I was like "Oh s***!" was when I looked up to see a cow moose bearing down on me with her ears pinned back with no prior knowledge that a moose was even in the area.  My partner and I moved back behind some shrubs (was the best we could do on short notice), and the cow veered off a few metres from us.  We assume there was a calf nearby-- though we never saw it.   Prior to the encounter we didn't hear them and they didn't hear us because it was quite a windy day, and we hadn't been making much noise.

But I agree with your point (and my sentence following the one you quoted says just that).  In general, many people are more likely to think 'oh sweet, let me pet you mr. moose' than with a bear ;)

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  • 1 year later...

Where specifically do you think you will encounter Big Moose for the first time?

My encounter will be at Mystery Lake Western Access.

Walking from the mountaineers hut towards the landing gear.  The day before I saw markings on a tree that I had never saw.  This set a red flag and I remained cautious. 

What will be your primary focus of activity?

Collecting sticks.

Was going rabbit hunting. 

Will you survive the encounter and how does it end?

Yes. My character probably would not have a bow, gun or rifle so by running away. 

I did have the pistol but I remained hidden and then backtracked and went down to the lake to hunt rabbits.

This was my first encounter in game and it happened while I was streaming.

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