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On � e hunt for � e
KING OF THE FOREST
TEXT MATS FALCK PHOTO ULF BERGLUND
IN THE FORESTS OF SWEDEN, the moose hunt
is an important annual event. In the north the season
starts on the fi rst Monday of September, while in the
south it begins on the second Monday of October.
The season then runs until January or February. Of
some 250,000 hunters in Sweden, more than 90 percent
are men.
Moose herds expanded considerably in Sweden in
the last century. In the 1940s, fewer than 20,000 animals
were shot, while in the 1980s the number peaked
at 180,000. Today some 100,000 of the estimated
300,000 to 400,000 moose in Sweden are shot annually.
sca’s forests alone are thought to contain some
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30,000-40,000 moose. Low shooting rates along with
plenty of food due to large-scale clear-cuttings in 1960s
and 1970s were the reasons for the strong growth in
moose herds.
The king of the forest feeds on leaves, branches and
grass and can live to be 20 to 25 years old. Moose,
also known as European elk, are the largest animal
in Sweden’s forests, weighing up to 550 kg (1,200
pounds) and reaching a height of 2 meters (6.5 feet).
Moose are found in the northern parts of North
America, Asia and Europe. In Latin, the Swedish
moose is known as Alces alces, from the Greek word
alke, which means strength. ▲
PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES