Hunting for elk for wabu, for roar, for groan with a professional are some of the features of manna hunting for large ungulates. Moose rut, hunting features How does elk rut go
During the race, the moose does not strive to win many females - one is enough for him. Except for those cases when a male moose walked with a couple of females and drove away all possible rivals.
The herds of moose farms and hunting grounds are known to be dominated by females, so (which is not quite normal) the male has to fertilize up to seven moose. In the pre-dawn and evening hours of August and September, the moan of males is heard through the forest, similar to the soft sounds of a dull lowing. During the mating season, the excitement of males reaches the limit, and they can break branches, tops of trees with their horns, knock out holes with powerful hooves. Having found the female, the moose begins to pursue her, while driving away the young males encroaching on the moose cow.
Following the female, several males are linked, which sometimes enter into fierce fights. The mating season makes females and especially males forget about caution, so they can be found on the roads, near people. At this time, it may seem that moose simply filled the forest, so there are a lot of them. The rut lasts about two months, and the last mating occurs in October, less often in November.
The ability to bear offspring appears in females in the second or third year of life, and in males a year later. The gestation period lasts from 225 to 240 days, and calving begins around April, continuing until May. In the conditions of the north, cubs appear from the beginning of June. There may be one or two calves in the calving, but the second cub often dies in the very first days and months of life. The terrain and natural conditions affect the number of calves in the litter.
The cubs are born in a light red color, there are no spots on their plain skin. 
During the first week, the calf does not move from its place and in case of danger it can only cling to the ground under the canopy of bushes and tall grass. A week will pass, and the calf is already confidently holding on to thin legs, pacing after the moose cow and eating young leaves of birches and aspens. He will be able to learn to wring and bend trees only with the advent of autumn. Long fragile legs do not allow the cub to bend to get grass. And only a month after birth, or a little later, the calf will begin to crawl “on its knees” in order to pinch the pasture.
A newborn calf weighs 6-16 kg, and due to its rapid development by the beginning of autumn, its weight reaches 120-130 kg, sometimes even up to 200 kg.
Moose calves suck milk for about 4 months, however, females that do not participate in the rut can feed until the very beginning of winter.
From May to June, the fat content of moose cow milk is from 8 to 13%, which makes it 3-4 times fatter compared to cow's milk, and the protein content in it reaches 16%, while in cow's milk it is 5 times less.
According to the observations of the employees of the moose farm in the Pechoro-Ilychsky Reserve, during the entire period of lactation, the moose cow produces 150-430 liters of milk. 
In late spring of the first year of life, horns already flaunt on the head of males, which already harden with the advent of July-August. These horns are still without signs of processes, and a pronounced shovel appears only after four years. The males shed their antlers from November to December, and the growth of new antlers begins in late spring. The still soft horns are very sensitive to damage and even insect bites, and after they harden in July, the males get rid of the skin covering the horns.
The life expectancy of an elk is on average 20-25 years, however, in the wild, animals die much earlier. For example, in the northern regions, starving bears that come out of their dens with the advent of spring often bully moose. Pregnant moose cows are persecuted for many, many kilometers. Moose calves that were born are easy prey for a bear. But the moose cow, carried away by maternal instinct, fiercely protects the cub, and it happens that she succeeds. In a desperate fight, a moose cow can not only seriously injure a bear with blows from its front legs, but even kill it. Such a bleak prospect forces the clubfoot to watch or drive the elk into the impassable jungle, where the ungulate cannot fight back with the blows of the front legs.
The elk rut takes place a little earlier than that of the deer - in late August - September, occasionally in early October, and is not so noisy and bright. Their roar is a relatively quiet hoarse sound, similar to lowing, which can only be heard close up. If marals are well-defined polygamists (polygamists), then moose are monogamous.
With a more or less equal sex ratio, the male spends the entire rutting period with one female. If there are more females in the population, which is usually observed in our lands as a result of disproportionate shooting, the male can successively replace several moose cows during the rut. In all cases, the male looks after the female attentively, politely, patiently and unobtrusively, waiting for her to show favor, disposition and allow him to approach. Ussuri elk. Rice. SOUTH. Makarova
If there are fewer females than males in the grounds, fights can take place between them. They are more cruel than between deer, there are known cases of death for one of the rivals. During the rut, males are excited, aggressive, the feeling of fear of a person is dulled.
In places where moose often meet people and therefore are little afraid of them, individual animals during the rut can be dangerous. The literature describes cases when they rushed at people, pursued them. Elk is a typical forest animal. However, in recent years, on the outskirts of the range, it began to penetrate into the tundra and steppe. In the region under consideration, it inhabits Gorny Altai and all forest lands of the Altai Territory. On the plain, it often lives far from large forests, but in such cases it keeps near small pegs or bushes. In completely treeless areas, it can be found only during transitions.
It is believed that the elk, unlike the maral, dislikes rugged terrain and avoids it. In the mountain forests it is less than in the lowlands, and in the mountains it is more common in more leveled areas, usually near lakes and swamps. Our observations show that moose often live in very stony places ... sometimes in stony tracts so difficult for moose that they had to run away from a person ... at a walk.
You can’t run: you can break your legs - after all, the elk is not a mountain goat. In a calm environment, when hunters or predators do not disturb it, the elk leads a sedentary, measured lifestyle. It will feed for 2-3 hours, lie down for about the same amount, graze again and lie down again. If there is enough food and no one frightens the beast, it can live on a plot of 2-3 hectares for half a month, and on 1-2 square meters. km - up to 1.5-2 months. In such an environment, the length of its daily transition in summer is no more than one, in winter - 2-4 km.
Naturally, during the period of rut, migrations, when pursued by hunters or predators, the activity of animals increases significantly and the daily transition can reach 20-30 km.
In our forests Prongs is the largest animal. Hunting for him is interesting, profitable, and sometimes dangerous. At all times in Russia, the Elk was considered a good prey for any hunter, he could provide the whole family with meat for the winter. Today, this approach to the production of this beast fades into the background. The main criterion for hunting this beautiful and strong animal is sports passion and excellent hunting trophies in the form of horns and interesting photographs from a collective hunt.
elk, elk, biology
Elk or Elk belongs to the deer family, a detachment of artiodactyls. Alces alces is the only species of the Elk genus, but there are several subspecies subdivided by geographic location. The separation of the American moose and the Eurasian moose has no basis, because. the differences between these two subspecies are only in the size of the animal - the Alaskan elk is somewhat larger. Elk lives throughout the forest zone of the Northern Hemisphere and, oddly enough, in New Zealand. Its habitat extends to the forest-tundra and goes to the forest-steppe. This is a very ancient species of artiodactyls, archaeologists find drawings of ancient hunters hunting for Prongs on the walls of Neolithic caves. As already noted, the Elk is the largest representative of the fauna in our forests. The growth at the withers of a male can reach more than two meters, and the record range of elk horns is 180 cm. The weight of the horns can be more than 20 kg. The weight of a large male reaches 600 kg, females are slightly smaller. A young calf of the year can reach a weight of 100 kg by autumn.
Knowing how to hunt a moose will help to understand its lifestyle and habitats. The main criterion in the behavior of this animal is that the elk is one of the strongest in the forest. Therefore, he has practically no enemies, even a small herd feels calm. The statement that the elk are slow and clumsy is not true. The running speed of an elk can be compared with a racehorse, its maneuverability in forest conditions is excellent, and the force of hitting the hoof of the front leg is enough to break the trunk of an aspen 10 cm. but also against natural enemies. Elk is one of the most protected animals in our forests.
Moose rut begins in September, a little later than red deer. In autumn, moose like to visit salt licks to replenish mineral reserves in their bodies.
Moose hunting methods
Traditionally, all methods of hunting for an elk for a hunter-sportsman remain the same as a taiga inhabitant hunts for an elk for centuries. The entire palette of permitted means and all the knowledge of the habits of this large ungulate is used. Such hunts can be divided into:
- salt lick hunting;
- hunting during the rut;
- paddock hunting;
- hunting from the approach;
- hunting with animal dogs.
The hunting period, according to the current Hunting Rules on the territory of the Russian Federation, begins with hunting for an elk during the rut from September 1 for a month, and ends on January 15, taking into account the production of underyearlings from January 1, when hunting for other sex and age groups is closed.
Salt lick hunting
Elk hunting in autumn on salt licks is somewhat easier compared to summer. Before winter, ungulates begin to actively visit such places again in order to replenish the mineral balance in the body before winter feeding. The grass is already starting to lay down, the midge is weakening. The arrangement of salt licks is a very painstaking task, the choice of a place for salting, as well as a storehouse or ambush, requires knowledge of local conditions. Air flows at different times of the day, the presence of natural enemies of ungulates, and the need for such feeding are also taken into account. After all, an accompanying goal, and sometimes the main thing, in the creation of a salt lick is the feeding of ungulates. According to hunting science, the density of solonetzes is optimal 2-3/1000 ha.
Elk is a very sensitive animal, both in hearing and in smell, but vision does not play a big role in the life of taiga animals. The motionless figure of the hunter, especially if he is in camouflage, the elk may not notice at a distance of 50 meters. Skradok can also be arranged on the ground. The main condition for the success of the sit-in is silence and the absence of third-party odors that can betray a person. But it is better to arrange an ambush at a height of 3-4 meters. This arrangement allows you to make a sure shot even in conditions of poor visibility. The solonetz itself is performed by the usual method for all ungulates. A platform with an area of 3 x 3 meters is trampled down, salt is diluted in water and the earth in the center of the platform is watered with a solution. The salt consumption rate of 3 kg per salt lick is sufficient, but when arranging long-term sites, it is better to increase it to 5 kg, and pour the brine into a small depression made with a pointed stick. Stacking lick salt in wood decks is not always available for various reasons, but is the best option for such a biotech.
The beast comes to the salt lick, usually at sunset. Unlike other ungulates, the moose approaches the place at a trot, it is not difficult to hear its approach. Just before entering the site, he listens for 10-15 minutes, then leaves. After briefly looking around, the animal begins to lick the salt, at which time you can safely aim at the kill site and fire a shot.
Hunting for "wabu" (for a roar)
Moose roar hunting is one of the most exciting and sporting, but it is not the main one in the production of this animal. Rather, such a hunt is in addition to the approach or surge hunt, to find a trophy male before it starts. However, there are many adherents of "waba". The voice of the male elk resembles a rude lowing, it is not as beautiful as the inviting cry of the deer. In early September, the elk begins to collect a harem of 2-3 females. It is to them that he gives a signal. All other males, having heard this voice, try to challenge the territory and the right to possess females. There are clashes, although real fights are not frequent. Usually the matter is decided by mutual examination and demonstration of force.
It is on this that the hunter should play, imitating the voice of a young male. Suhaty during the rut is an example of a dangerous beast that, feeling its strength, can attack a too annoying opponent. A hunter can also be an object.
But the night of battle subsides. Early in the morning at dawn, the elk begins to bellow, comb the bark on the trees with its horns, marking the territory, and crackle with windbreak without hiding. At this time, he is attentive, but not cautious. Any movement he may mistake for the appearance of a rival, but the wrong smell or unnatural sound can scare him away. The danger for the hunter may lie in the enraged beast, which came out on the enemy, when caution gives way to the spirit of competition. Hunting for an elk during the rut with its danger adds to the sharpness of sensations, gives sports excitement, and the won trophy becomes even more valuable. In September, the largest number of prize trophies is obtained on the roar, because the strongest opponents enter the fight. Learning how to lure a elk is easy enough.
Stalking hunting
Moose move in small families, the oldest male, two or three females and young animals. Usually it is 5-6 heads. The sensitivity of the beast all the time, except for the mating season, is high.
It is necessary to hide the moose family carefully, only against the wind. Clothing should not have extraneous odors, preferably if it is camouflage or camouflage.
The sight of the elk is not very sharp, if the hunter is motionless even in the open, the animals may not notice him. It is best to wrap the animal at feeding. Animals defend in dense thickets, and it is unlikely that it will be possible to approach them silently. On vacation, moose are convenient to take on a surge.
Paddock hunting
Well, if a few days before the start of such a hunt, reconnaissance surveys of the grounds are carried out. Thus, places for elk sludge, their fattening will be established, as well as trails full of elk will be established. In two or three days, the animals will not move significantly, and it will not be difficult to find them. Usually, a disturbed family tries to go to an open place where it has freedom of maneuver. Experience tells them that it is easy to hide in the swamp, or along the floodplain of the river. In the taiga zone, hunters should use forest clearings to wait for the approach of a racing animal. The elk is not shy, leaves at a low speed, lingers in open places to look around. All of this should be taken advantage of. The team of beaters must start the noise no earlier than the shooters take their places on the numbers. The rut must begin intensively with rattles and ringing, otherwise a strong beast may try to break through the beaters in the direction it needs. This can be avoided in two ways - to choose the right direction of the rut and produce the rut intensively to frighten the beast. A frightened beast will seek to leave more often, along paths, along a river bank.
Hunting with dogs
Hunting for elk in autumn along the black trail, before the start of the fishing period, is very effective with dogs. The best animal huskies in this business. A pair of well-trained dogs can confidently hold the beast and let the hunter come up for a shot. The chance to find an elk in the grounds at any time and in any area also increases. Usually elk is not afraid of dogs and even tries to attack them. For inexperienced dogs, this can end badly. If the object of the hunt is the uterus, then she may try to detain the dogs and let the young go away. Young growth under the dog is not worth it, in this case it is necessary to recall the dogs if they are not used for corralling. Chasing a departing strong beast along a black path is a thankless task, you can waste the whole day, and even go far from the chosen hunting area.
With any method of hunting, it must be borne in mind that the elk will instinctively act as it would act when meeting with a natural enemy. A strong male can attack the enemy. When leaving, the elk goes out into the open space, where it has freedom of maneuver. With unequal forces, on the contrary, the moose tries to leave in the most inconvenient places for the pursuer.
Weapons and ammunition
The choice of weapon is entirely up to the hunter. Only small-caliber weapons fall under the restriction of the rules. Rifled carbines in caliber 7.62 and 9.0 mm, smoothbore weapons with specially loaded bullet cartridges will be a good choice. It is better to use expansive bullets, arrows, as they are light and do not give the desired effect at a long distance. It should be remembered that according to hunting ethics, as well as according to the current rules, the hunter is obliged to get a wounded animal. In such cases, it is even allowed to pursue a wounded animal on foreign lands and outside the area allocated for hunting.
The elk is very tough on the wound. In hunting stories, there are a lot of cases when the beast got up and left even after a mortal wound for several kilometers. There was a similar case with the author. The killer place for a shot is always the area of the shoulder blades, here it is most likely to immobilize the animal with a hit in the spine, break the scapular joint or pierce the heart. The second in terms of slaughter is the large head of the elk. On a calm beast, you can easily make a sure shot in the forehead or temple. It is strongly not recommended to shoot at the body, there is a risk of piercing the internal organs. With such a wound, the beast will easily go out of reach, and after detection, the meat will inevitably be spoiled. A large carcass retains heat for a long time, and the intestines can turn sour even at 30˚ frost in the snow.
Male moose reach sexual maturity at the age of 1.5 years. If in a state of "rest", in December - January, the length of the testes in males of this age is 68 - 70, the width is 35 - 40 mm, and the weight of the pair is 75 g, then in September, during the rut, these figures will respectively be 85 - 90, 40 - 45 mm and 150 - 163 g. If, further, the ratio of the weight of a pair of testes to the slaughter weight of males (index in ppm) in the state of "rest" is 4 - 5, then during the rut, i.e. on 2 - 3 months earlier, - 11 - 12.
The study of the size and weight of testicles in moose of different ages showed that they reach their minimum weight in March - April (54 g), maximum (300 g) - in September. Maintaining approximately the same ratio of testes weight to slaughter weight with adult males, 1-5-year-old bulls begin to increase testes weight somewhat later than older males. In young bulls, the subsequent (after the peak of the rut) decrease in the weight of the testicles is also late. This last feature is of extremely great biological importance.
Males in the second and third years of life, which are usually driven away from females by older and stronger males, turn out to be not useless in nature. They serve as a “safety” age group, which contributes to ensuring 100% fertilization of moose cows during the period of weakening or ending of sexual activity in adult strong males.
The timing of the onset of estrus in moose cows does not depend on either age or fatness. They are determined by a complex of environmental factors, individual characteristics and the physiological state of animals. However, in terms of fecundity - the number of cubs per one giving birth to a female - age and fatness have a specific meaning.
In the Pechora taiga, for example, yes, perhaps, in most other places in our country, moose bring their first offspring at the age of 3 years. At the same time, the number of embryos per primiparous moose cow is noticeably less than per mother giving birth again. This number increases in moose cows of subsequent ages and reaches a maximum at 6.5 - 7.5 years. In moose cows older than this age, fertility rates gradually decrease. However, even in the oldest moose cows, these indicators are not lower than those in young animals. This speaks in favor of the fact that in nature there are practically no animals that are not capable of reproduction due to the onset of old age and decrepitude. Usually moose cows do not live to such a state, dying from other causes (hunting, predators, hunger, accidents).
The age of moose cows affects not only the size of the offspring, but also its gender. If we take all moose cows on average, then for every 100 bulls they give birth to the same number or slightly more or fewer heifers (depending on the state of the conditions of existence).
Young moose cows at the age of 1.5 and 2.5 years bring into the offspring 1.5 - 3 times more heifers than bulls; at the age of 3.5 - 5.5 years - an approximately equal number of bulls and heifers, at the age of 6.5 - 9.5 years - slightly more heifers (by 10 - 20%), and at the age of 10 years and older - almost 2 times more bulls are born.
In moose cows with one embryo, at almost all ages, heifers significantly predominate over bulls, and only in 10-year-old and older moose cows, on the contrary, there are 2 times more bulls than heifers in the offspring.
In moose cows with two embryos, bulls predominate on average, in animals under the age of 5.5 years and 10 years and older, this predominance is especially pronounced. Only moose cows at the age of 6.5 - 9.5 years have an equal number of heifers and bulls.
In paired offspring, on average, individuals of different sexes predominate (71%), but only males (20%) and only females (9%) are found.
The sex of the offspring is also affected by the wintering conditions of the females preceding the rut. It has been noted that the less well-fed a moose cow is by the beginning of the mating season, the more often gobies predominate in her offspring, and vice versa.
Adult and strong males breed both young, middle-aged and old moose cows - the one they meet that is in a state of hunting (estrus). In the older age group, females predominate by one third, and among the males of the older age group, a significant number of animals are weakened and sick (external signs are weak and ugly horns) that are not able to withstand the competition for a female, so old moose cows are covered mainly by males younger than them. . In all cases, therefore, mating of sires of different ages is achieved, which gives the most vital offspring.
Each sex and age group, therefore, is necessary for the moose population to carry out self-regulation of numbers and structures in relation to the requirements of the habitat, including both disturbance factors and fishing pressures, and everything that in one way or another affects the life of moose.
Among Pechora moose cows, approximately 2/3 bring one cub each and 1/3 - two cubs each. In the Kirov region, the percentage of moose calves that give birth to twins is higher and approaches 35%. In the more southern regions (Volgograd, Rostov, etc.), the fertility rates of moose are even higher, which, apparently, is explained by a longer growing season, which provides moose with complete feed for a longer period, and which, most importantly, reduces the period of winter hunger strikes.
Moose cows are rarely pregnant at the age of 1.5 years - 15% of all cases, among moose cows older than one and a half years they are already 84%.
The main reasons for missing moose cows are their exhaustion and postpartum inflammation of the genital organs (chronic metritis). There are known cases of emptying caused by trauma to moose cows during the rutting period by aggressive bulls, the presence of underdeveloped, infantile genital organs in adult moose cows or a mummifying fetus after an unsuccessful birth.
Knowing the most productive ages of females and the significance of different sex and age ratios in the moose population, it is possible to artificially control their reproductive process.
Yu. P. Yazan. ELK. HUNTING FOR UNGATES.-Publishing house "Forest industry", 1976
September is the most wonderful and beautiful autumn month, filled with a gentle, not scorching sun, clear air and a luxurious autumn palette. It is at this time that the mating season for moose (gon) begins, and their roar is heard far across the district. In September, you can watch real tournaments between forest giants, and for hunters, this is a kind of command to start hunting for a roar.
The behavior of moose during the rut.
As with any other hunt, in order for it to be successful, the hunter should study the habits and behavior of animals during the rut in great detail. The fact that the rut has begun in moose can be determined by the same signs as in all representatives of the deer family.
The moose starts digging holes, then urinates in them, then rubs his back in this mud. It is known that moose have a kind of skin growth on their neck, it is also called an “earring”, and the older the male, the larger the “earring” he has. There is an explanation for the presence of this outgrowth in the elk: thanks to the “earring”, it sprays its scent as high and as far as possible. Hunters, for sure, met these characteristic depressions in the ground, made by elks at the beginning of the rut. This period is also characterized by the fact that the males have a very pungent smell, so strong that not all dogs can work on the moose at this time. Why are there dogs, even a person can feel it, being near moose urinary pits.
Already in the first days of September, roaring moose can be heard in the forest. Adults are the first to open the season, and the most active elk rut begins around the twentieth of September. When the rut is in full swing, three or four males can harass one female at the same time. It also happens that the rut drags on for the whole of October, but by the end of it, young males enter the mating rut. But few people know that the preparation for this important event of the moose life is quite long. Moose actively feed, trying to gain maximum body weight, and by the end of summer, males become very well-fed.
By the time the hunt begins, moose have ten centimeters of subcutaneous fat on their backs, and all the fat on the body of a moose can be up to seventy kilograms. Approximately, by the fifteenth of September, the horns of males lose their "velvet" completely. In autumn, trees damaged by elk antlers can be observed in the forest. During the rut, the males rub their heads against the trees, leaving a secret on them, secreted from the glands that are on the head.
An elk is a solitary animal, in this state it spends most of its life. Therefore, the male attracts several females at once, but does not start constant companions. Only for the period of the rut, moose unite in pairs that coexist for up to six days. The male uses the female several times a day. After that, the female no longer needs him, and the male begins to look for a new partner. There are situations when stronger and older males try to recapture a moose cow from an opponent, but the female herself chooses with whom to stay. However, during the rut, calves born last year are close to their mothers and their adult males do not touch them.
If compared with deer, then moose, of course, are inferior to them in the beauty of mating behavior. The noble deer trumpets so that it can be heard far away, but the moose are not so loud. However, in moose, not only males, but also females make calling sounds, so they communicate with each other. These sounds are similar to jerky, short lowing. They are well heard only in calm weather or at night, sometimes at dawn. During these periods, sounds are carried along the river valleys for several kilometers. The roar of females and males can be distinguished by timbre. Moose cows scream long, calling for males. And the male is short, like a grunt. By the end of the season, the sounds made by males become plaintive with a whistle. At sunset and sunrise, as well as at night, males give a voice, and females snort in response.
Male Tournaments.
In terms of spectacular performance, the fights of elks are not inferior to the fights of deer, only the former get it more powerful and ferocious, since they surpass deer in body weight. The battle begins with a kind of prelude. Opponents scare each other: they dig the ground with their hooves, wave their horns, make lowing sounds. If the enemy did not retreat, then the males rush towards each other with rage. The blows of their horns are so powerful that it can be heard within a radius of a kilometer. If the strength of the fighters is not equal, then everything ends very soon with the escape of the one who is weaker. If the forces are equal, then the duel can last several hours. In the battlefield, the grass is completely trampled down to the ground. It is a rare case if the outcome of the battle is lethal, although the fights of males are very cruel.
In a duel, moose can cause significant damage to each other: lacerations, broken ribs, damaged horns. Elk horns have a shovel-like structure, therefore rivals are not entangled with horns, but with sharp processes on them, they can inflict a serious and even mortal wound on each other. Even if the rut is long enough, most moose cows are covered in a short time. And the less uncovered females remain, the fights between males become less frequent.
When hunting moose, one should not forget that these animals represent almost the greatest danger of all living on our territory. The aggression of males during the rut increases not only in relation to the opponent, but also to predatory animals and people. When defending and attacking, the elk beats with all limbs and horns, it may well mutilate to death. Of course, an elk tries to avoid meeting a person, but a wounded animal is always dangerous. Therefore, the hunter needs, before going to the elk, to outline the path of retreat. An elk is not a shy animal, if he went on the attack, raising his hair at the withers, it is unlikely that a shot will scare him.
As mentioned above, it is best to start hunting for a roar at the very beginning of autumn. The duration of this type of hunting depends on the period of the rut, which in turn depends on the area where it all happens. If September is hot in summer, then moose postpone their mating games for some time, which means that hunting for a roar is also postponed in time. However, not only this can interfere with hunting, but, for example, gusty wind, rain, slush, since in such weather the elk is almost inaudible. Moose rarely make their sounds during the day, most often, this happens early in the morning or late in the evening, sometimes all night. When the male is in search of a female, he is quite dangerous, and his roar is similar to that of a bear. These sounds, if you hear them close, in silence, are very creepy, especially if the moose itself is not visible.
Moose hunting for a roar during the rut takes place in places where elk weddings take place. You can find these places by certain signs, imperceptible to an ordinary person, but understandable to every hunter. One of the main signs is damaged trees and shrubs, on which traces of horns are visible. The second sign (we also wrote about it above) is the pits in the place of the rut, which the male knocks out with his hooves. These pits can reach up to one and a half meters in diameter at the top, and up to twenty centimeters in depth. And from them come the characteristic smell of urine.
So, you have found the place of the rut, you can start preparing for the hunt. You should come to the hunting place even before the sun has risen or at dusk, since at this time of the day the elk is most active. If you are going to hunt at night, then you should have a special hunting lantern with you. While, when hunting other animals, one must be quiet, in moose hunting one must be as noisy as possible. Go to the place of hunting ahead, breaking bushes and branches. Thus, the moose must understand and hear the approach of the enemy, then, perhaps, he will come out to meet you. Since this animal is aggressive during the rut, it can appear abruptly and unexpectedly, which means that you should keep your gun ready. With this type of hunting you are guaranteed thrills.
Most often, they hunt moose in pairs. You should approach the rut from the leeward side. One of the hunters "wabit" - imitates the roar of an elk or moose cow, thus luring the male. However, it should be remembered that in this case one must be ready to shoot at any time, so the place where the hunter is located must be with good visibility. “Vabit” must first be done slowly, as the moose may be nearby. It is necessary to add volume only if the animal does not manifest itself in any way. If the male responded, then it is necessary to continue the “vabing” only at the moment of his movement. For greater credibility, you can break the branch. And get ready to wait for his appearance, keep your gun at the ready. Aim at the skull or between the shoulder blades. They shoot a wounded elk close to just below the ear, approaching him from the side.
If you hunt moose, then safety precautions must be observed especially carefully and do not forget about the rules of hunting. It happens that the hunter makes a mistake and instead of the animal shoots at the second hunter, mistaking him for an elk. Therefore, until you see the elk, in no case do not shoot. At night or at dusk, the roar of an elk causes fear, but despite this, it is necessary to maintain composure and maintain restraint.
This hunt is one of the most interesting, however, be careful, as the animal during the rut is aggressive and dangerous. Despite the fact that the moose walks quite calmly, not being afraid of anything, it is almost impossible to approach him. They have an excellent sense of smell and keen hearing, so he will quickly detect a hunter who tries to get close to him. If you scare away the animal, then there will definitely be no hunting that day.
Also, read on the website:
(no subject)
I have a girlfriend. Lives in another city. Beautiful, smart. But one. She has a good job. I bought a car and am waiting for it to arrive. Today, in an ICQ conversation, she gave out that a car would come, and she ...