Yes, Moose are found in Russia. It is recorded that 14.4 million km2 of moose are lived in Russia. You will find 4 different subspecies of moose. Although the moose in Russia is the same as the moose in other countries, they are not considered to be a part of the normal range of moose everywhere else.
In this article, you will learn about Moose, where they can be found in European countries, what they consume, and some more information about moose that you may have interest about.
Are There Moose in Russia?
Moose are normally found in regions where the temperature is quite low, for example, in northern America or Canada. And Russia is the place where the temperature drops very low; Moose is also found there.
The moose habitat covers approximately 14.4 million km² areas in Russia, with more than 500,000 Moose living the area. The highest population of Moose recorded in Russia is 833,000, which was recorded back in 1990. Since then, the population of Moose has only declined.
There are four main subspecies of Moose you can find in Russia:
- Alces Alces (Linnaeus, 1758): The European Moose can be found in the Altai Mountains, European Russia, Ural Mountains and Western Russia.
- Alces Alces Pfizenmayeri (Zukowsky, 1910): This is a Mid-Siberian Moose found in the eastern area of the Yenisey River all the way to the Cherskey Mountain Range.
- Alces Alces Buturlini (Chernyavsky and Zhelesnov, 1982): This is the East Siberian Moose that can be found across the whole of Northeast Siberia
- Alces Alces Cameloids (Milne-Edwards, 1867): This is a West Siberian Moose found in the Amur Region and Sikhote-Alin Mountain Ranges.
Other than seeing Moose in the wild nature, Russia has Moose Farms too. Like the Kostroma Moose Farm which has around 800 Moose individuals.
In fact, Russia is the home to some of the largest moose farms in Europe, and they’re investing heavily in their future the Sumarokovo Moose Farm which was started as a research farm.
Moose symbolizes pride and wealth in Russia and is a key part of their culture and economy.
Statistics And Moose Populations in Russia (European and Asiatic Russia):
According to the graph, in Russia, which can further be divided into European Russia (White Bar) and Asiatic Russia (Grey Bar). The highest population of the two combined was 833,000 in 1990, and by 2007, it dropped to 600,000, with the two regions being almost the same.
In terms of Asiatic Russia, the population of Moose remained somewhat constant from 1970 to 2007, with a slight rise from 1970 to 1990. There was a decrease in population from 1990 to 2000, but it rose again by a small margin from 2000 to 2007. The population remained at a constant of around 300,000.
But, if we look at the stats of European Russia, it can be seen that the population has always been higher than Asiatic Russia from 1970 to 1990, with a further rise in the population every decade.
Still, there was a drastic fall in the population (Almost 50%) from 1991 to 2002, which affected the total population. The decrease was so much that the population of European Russia had much lower moose than that of Asiatic Russia (whose population remained constant at 300,000) at that time. Even though the population rose slightly from 2002 to 2007, it remained lower than Asiatic Russia’s.
This high decrease in the population affected the density of Moose, and the reason for that would be declining forest area. In the regions where there were more forests, the density of Moose was higher. It is found that forests were destroyed for the following reasons:
- Human habitation
- The density of Moose declined, and
- The density of humans increased.
Of the 45 regions in European Russia, 42 regions witnessed a population decline from 1990 to 2002. From 2002 to 2007, 36 regions saw a rise in population, whereas 6 saw a decline.
In contrast, if we look at Asiatic Russia, where human density was low, from 1990 to 2002, 5 regions showed a decrease in population and 22 showed an increase, out of a total of 28 regions. Similarly, from 2002 to 2007, 11 regions saw a decrease in population, and 14 saw a rise.
If we compare the two regions of European and Asiatic Russia, the increase or decrease in the population was smaller relatively than that of the changes in the population is
Do Moose Live in Europe?
Yes, moose can be found in Europe, though they are much less common than in the 19th century.
They are common throughout the continent, particularly in mountainous areas. They are also found in the far north of Europe.
They are most common in the Scandinavian countries of Norway and Sweden but have also been spotted in Finland and Finland’s neighboring countries.
As per the reports in 2017, there were approximately more than 1.5 million Moose in Europe, of which, three main moose species are the Red, the Brown, and the Alpine. The Brown and Alpine species are more common in Europe than the red moose.
Do Moose Live in Ukraine?
You can find moose in Ukraine, but it takes work, so the answer to your question would be yes, moose do live in Ukraine.
The population of Moose in Ukraine is not well documented, but the number is to be estimated in the thousands.
You would find a significant number of moose in the western part of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s most common type of Moose is the European Elk (Subspecies of the Moose). The best place to find Moose in Ukraine is the Pine Forests, but unfortunately, these forests are declining in numbers.
What Do Moose Eat in Russia?
Moose is physically a very large animal, and you might wonder what they consume. Moose are herbivores, which means that they don’t eat meat but instead eat plants.
A moose’s diet in Russia comprises plants, berries, and roots. This includes shrubs and trees like birch, spruce, aspen, and fir trees, among others.
They also eat grasses, including mosses, lichens, and fungi growing on tree bark or wood products such as fences or docks. Their diet also consists of berries and fruit, especially apples.
FAQs
Which country has the most moose?
The Country which has the most population of moose is Sweden and has almost 400,000 moose before the start of the hunting season. You find the greatest number of Moose in the Bergslagen Forest.
However, if you want to know the country with the highest number of moose, that country would be Canada, with more than 850,000 Moose.
You can find Moose in almost every region in Canada except for the Artic and Vancouver Islands.
Which animals are only found in Russia?
Many kinds of animals can only be found in Russia; some of them are:
1) Russian desman
2) Freshwater seals of Lake Baikal and Lake Ladoga
3) Putorana snow sheep
4) Amur lemming
5) Ross’s gull
6) Burguzin Sable
Conclusion
In Russia, the moose is called лось (lozha). This comes from the word “losh,” meaning “moose.” The reason that the moose is called лось in Russia has to do with its size. In Russia, it is considered to be a large animal, and therefore they call it лось.
Reference:
Data and Graph Source: https://www.academia.edu/33668640/Status_of_Regional_Moose_Populations_in_European_and_Asiatic_Russia
