The Chippewa tribe of northern Minnesota called off their annual moose hunt this year. The reason? There simply aren't enough left to hunt.
Dwindling moose numbers are just one of the alarming and disturbing revelations in this recent New York Times article on the plight of moose in the United States. For others, it's serves an another very big wake up call for those questioning the effect of climate change on the ecosystem.
In Canada, the same phenomena has been reported. The Globe and Mail looked into the startling declines in population in British Columbia in 2013. Estimates in B.C. peg the population decline anywhere from 20 to 70 per cent in the Caribou Region of the province. Speculation on the declines range from diminishing habitat to climate-based stresses on the moose's immune systems.
In Minnesota, warmer summers have create ideal conditions for spread of brain worm, a parasite that lives on white-tailed deer and is fatal to moose, according to the New York Times
It seems in northerly locations, brain worm has not been as prevalent, though that could to change as temperatures continue to rise as moose travel farther north.
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