Influence of hunting on movements of moose near roads

Abstract

Vehicle collisions with large wildlife provide a serious risk of severe personal injuries. In some countries, there is a common belief that hunting increases this risk because it leads to more active animals and increases roads crossings. We analyzed movements of moose (Alces alces) and frequency of moose road crossings during fall to test if moose altered their behavior during hunting periods compared to other times. We analyzed global positioning system (GPS) data from 172 free‐ranging adult moose (140 females, 32 males) between the end of August and the middle of October 2004–2013, in 7 different areas along Sweden's latitudinal gradient of 57°N–67°N. Female moose either decreased or did not change their movement rates as fall proceeded, and they did not cross roads more in any weeks of the hunting season. Male moose became more active between mid‐September and the beginning of October, which corresponds to the time before the hunting period in southern Sweden and the temporary hunting closure in northern Sweden. There was no overall change in moose movements in relation to hunting activity during fall regardless of region or sex. We found that number of road crossings correlated positively with the rutting period in male moose. Thus, the riskier periods for traffic during fall during the hunting period, based on moose movement, coincided with the rutting activity. We suggest that mitigation actions to reduce moose‐vehicle collisions should make drivers more aware of changes in movement behavior in moose during the rutting season, particularly in southern Sweden. © 2018 The Wildlife Society.

Strength of correlation between wildlife collision data and hunting bags varies among ungulate species and with management scale

“…roe deer Grignolio et al 2011, wild boar Thurfjell et al 2013). Yet, other factors than hunting disturbances may influence animal movement and UVC-risk more strongly (Neumann et al 2012;Steiner et al 2014;Neumann and Ericsson 2018;Saint-Andrieux et al 2020), and most of the wild boar in Sweden are shot over bait (Swedish Government Official Report 2014).…”

Calving and post-calving habitat use of female moose in two contrasting landscapes

“…the period when parturition likely occurred and when females were still nursing the calves. Also, moose hunting begins in September, and this period was therefore excluded from the analysis as the movements during this time would be affected by the hunt (Neumann and Ericsson 2019). The status of the calving females and the fact that the calf was alive were checked for every moose during autumn.…”

Moose Management Strategies under Changing Legal and Institutional Frameworks

“…We did not analyze moose damage to forest regeneration and young stands, as this is a well-known issue in all countries with high numbers of animals [2,48,67,[85][86][87][88]. However, high numbers of moose pose a direct threat to humans, as their large size and long legs cause injuries or lethal consequences in wildlife-vehicle collisions [89]. This also is characteristic to Lithuania, where the growth of moose populations has resulted in an increase in moose-related wildlife-vehicle collisions [90,91].…”

“…While mitigation strategies should be species-tailored [92], they are all costly. Moose management measures, such as moose hunting near roads may be another solution [89].…”