The moose lose
The moose is called the King of the Forest here in Sweden, but I don’t know if agree with that…
Sweden has the highest population of moose in the world, 300 000. A third of these are killed during the annual hunt. Then on the other hand, the reproduction is the fastest on the planet and the same amount of moose stalk the forests by the following autumn. Most of them (and the biggest ones) can be found in the northern Sweden, some of them with as much as 26 tynes in their crowns.
Formerly an economic necessity, the moose hunt is now more a matter of lifestyle and keeping an old tradition alive. About 250 000 of our 9 million inhabitants now have a moosehunting license and may be able to provide friends and relations with a big, juicy moose steak.
“Things Swedish” by Mari Hemming
I have eaten moose steak, but not so often. It’s good, if you forget about adding the juniper berries and stuff that makes it taste so wild.
I’ve mostly seen them on the sides of the roads, but I’ve grow up and lived all my life around Stockholm which is a city so….
When I was a teenager and was in the stables of the nearest riding school, I got really close to one female moose once. It was in the forest just at the side of the stable and I thought it was a horse that had came loose, so I went forward to catch it. She was standing there eating some leafs from a bush, partly hidden. Then she raised her head when I came closer and I saw what it was! Need I say that I backed away quickly from there…?
We have a lot of moose warning signs at the side of the roads around Sweden, despite the fact that we even have high fences to protect the car drivers from hitting any moose with their cars. That have decreased the amount of accidents.
The only problem is that the signs have become very popular among certain tourists, so they suddenly disappear mysterious….
Secret whisper: There is some questionable rumours saying that moose poo in cans is sold to tourists with great success!
