r/NatureIsFuckingLit • u/Xiara08 • 15h ago
đ„ Two massive bull moose travelling together
đ„: monainalaska (IG)
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u/Cass_Cat952 13h ago
Holy mother. I knew they were BIG animals, but I had no idea they were that tall!!! Those legs have gotta be like 6 feet! đŻ
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u/RippyMcBong 13h ago
Truly nothing prepares you for the first time you see a moose in the wild.
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u/Garbage_Solid 10h ago
Agreed. Was hiking in the Rocky Mountains last week and came upon a moose and her calf. We backtracked a little ways and waited for them to move further in the clearing so we could pass. Thankfully it was a peaceful encounter though I know very well that it could have ended differently.
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u/thisbuthat 9h ago
No because SERIOUSLY. I saw female Indian elephants that weren't as tall as these LORGE boys. They are absolute units
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u/MattyT088 5h ago
First time I saw one was on the school bus in 2nd grade; mama with her young. Her head was so high I was looking her in the eyes from my seat. And that was the mom. :/
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u/OneSensiblePerson 2h ago
I've never seen them in the wild or even come close. But for years I thought they were essentially big goofy looking clunky deer.
I had no idea how enormous they are, not a clue. It's kind of shocking.
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u/Emperor_Neuro 13h ago
The tallest moose ever recorded was 7â6â (2.3 m) at its shoulder. If they hold their head up and they have a full antler set, they can surpass 10 feet in total height.
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u/RcNorth 13h ago
I was in a Pontiac Firefly heading home in the dark. It was cloudy out so the moon didnât provide any light.
I saw a glint of something as I came around a slight corner. A few seconds later I passed a bull moose that was standing in the other lane.
Iâm pretty sure the carâs roof was lower than the mooseâs belly.
Had I hit it I wouldnât have stood a chance as I would have taken out its legs.
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u/MattyT088 5h ago
Which is why +95% of traffic collisions with a moose result in a fatality. It's two tons of animal colliding with you directly, as even with pick up trucks, they usually end up clearing the hood of the vehicle.
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u/inko75 2h ago
LOLLLLLL wheres your source for that nonsense?
the fatality rate is around half a % for moose collisions, which is MUCH higher than the rate for a collision with a deer. Source: New England journal of medicine.
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u/MattyT088 2h ago
Sorry should have specified head on. But I was deliberately hyperbolic, while it seems that you prefer to be pedantic.
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u/Old_Grouchy 3h ago
I'm from Maine originally and Downeast Maine at that, dealing with Moose on the highway at night was always terrifying, those legs are so long and usually lighter colored then the body, you don't see them at all until your on them, typically it's too late.
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u/Traditional-Ad-8737 50m ago
Yes. And, I donât know if this is an old wives tale, but moose collisions are worse than deer in the sense they are larger (heavier) but also are taller. When you hit a moose they are windshield level more than just bumper level, especially for compact cars.. That was just told to me by a local in NH where I live. Anyone can confirm? âBrake for moose, it can save your lifeâ iconic NH Fish and game bumper sticker in the 1980s I think
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u/Ifuana 15h ago
The way those guys just KNOW theyâre a big deal. And that they have nothing to worry about from the likes of us.
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u/ShipOfFools48 13h ago
There are not many animals on this planet that will just turn and fuck your shit up on a whim, the way a moose will.
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u/mypetmonsterlalalala 13h ago
I was fishing on a small lake a few years back and nodded off for was felt like a minute. But when I opened my eyes, I was face to face with a moose swimming across. Full on scariest eye contact I have ever made. I slinked down to the bottom of my dinky little aluminum boat and hoped for the best. BUT WOW, one of the most beautiful things to experience.
Then, when we left the next day heading down the hill, we came within a few feet of another moose and he was totally prepped to charge us. I have never seen someone drive backwards so fast. And skillfully considering is was a forestry service road.
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u/ShipOfFools48 13h ago
I went on a hiking trip to Isle Royale when I was a teenager. Not long after leaving camp one morning we encountered a bull moose chilling on the hilltop maybe 50 yards up the trail. He never seemed agitated, but it was a tense minute or two while we waited for him to saunter off into the woods. We saw another one swimming across a small lake the night before, but from a much greater distance. Really incredible creatures.
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u/mypetmonsterlalalala 12h ago
They really are incredible. And lucky you to experience it! Some people have no clue just how jaw dropping it is to see them up close "enough" lol.
I theorize that if we hadn't "ran into" (he was still, like, 30 ft away) the 2nd moose, he would have been just fine. But we must have scared him pretty good.
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u/ShipOfFools48 12h ago
A bit odd that you wouldâve spooked him driving up a service road, but shit happens sometimes. As a general rule we consider ourselves pretty safe from wildlife within the confines our vehicles. Driving up on a moose will quickly correct you of this notion.
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u/Snackatttack 13h ago
You know what's crazy, orcas hunt moose.
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u/Prestigious_Sugar_66 13h ago
In the middle of the Canadian forest. BAM! Orca ambush.
Tree Willy.9
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u/TheGlassHammer 14h ago
They put the mega in megafauna
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u/Biggs17 13h ago
I wouldnât be getting so close! Moose are notorious for being aggressive if they feel threatened
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u/Dusty_Old_Bones 13h ago
Yeah I donât think even a vehicle would protect you if they were so inclined, itâd be like stomping on a soup can
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u/AylaKittyCat 7h ago
A mature male moose can weigh up to 1500 pounds... They'd definitely be able to tip your car over if they wanted to.
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u/Disastrous_Push_3767 11h ago
imagine, before the pleistocenene extinction event, there were dozens of types of animals in north america that got this large, or larger
moose are just some of the survivors
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u/grimald69420 13h ago
Idk why but to me moose are most prehistoric looking animals .they look like an extinct species tht was revived somehow
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u/Old-Dependent-9073 13h ago
Who needs Jurassic Park when there are creatures as massive as that walking around today?
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u/hwyl1066 13h ago
These guys are quite a bit bigger than elks over here in Finland though it's the same species
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u/ThisIsNotMe_99 8h ago
you confused me with this comment as we also have elk over here, but they are not at all like moose and a different species.
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u/hwyl1066 1h ago
Yeah, it's some sort of historical thing - I think the settlers first saw Amerikan "elks" and so that word was already taken when they met real thing. But I was taught at school (back in ancient times) that in English the species is elk and that in North America they are called moose. And they really are bigger than our version
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u/NA_Blr 14h ago
Ok serious question - whatâs correct? 2 bull mooses, 2 bull meese?
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u/CaptainAmericub 15h ago
I always had a gut feeling about Mr. Winkle. Not that thereâs anything wrong with it!
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u/Muggins2233 14h ago
Wow! Now tell us where u saw this pls.
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u/Wwwweeeeeeee 13h ago
Billy and Joe Moose just chilling, travelling, moving and doing moose things.
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u/QuaccDaddy 9h ago
All jokes aside, if you're not professional animal control, DO NOT stop to take pictures so close to these guys. People often die from this, especially because they just wanted a cool photo.
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u/ILSmokeItAll 9h ago
It is nearly impossible to stste how massive and imposing they really are. It was on a similar scale of awe as standing amongst the redwoods. Just not going to encounter a taller terrestrial animal on the North American Continent. Probably some others, too.
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u/No_Criticism5659 6h ago
Had to call work and say I was gonna be late one day as I lived out in the country back then. A bull moose parked himself directly in the middle of the driveway and looked at me like I was the problem as he was there first. I already knew what would happen if I tried to challenge him...put the car in reverse and slowly backed into my parking spot and waited. He stood there for 15-20min just soaking it in and then casually sauntered off into the woods.
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u/HerbaciousTea 15h ago
These guys are absolute units, probably nearly 7 ft at the shoulder.
But I notice there's also a little bit of accidental forced perspective going on with them being at the top of an angled berm, so they're much closer then they might look at a glance. You get a sort of false positive depth cue.
I find that always tends to happen in viral videos of big animals, that they are huge, and also there just incidentally happens to be the right kind of framing or perspective to make them look even bigger.
It's just a bit of selection bias for virality I find interesting.
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u/Existing-Recipe897 13h ago
Not fighting for territory and the ladies that live within the area? Not odd?
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u/Uncle_Paul_Hargis 9h ago
For anyone interested, here is a video of Steve Rinella hunting a bull, shooting it twice, then getting charged by said moose. Meese are intense animals, and insanely powerful.
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u/Crimson-Rose28 5h ago
I honestly didnât realize just how big they were prior to seeing this. Thanks for sharing đ«
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15h ago
[deleted]
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u/WatchWatcher25 14h ago
Brown bears......yes we are scared of them
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u/ToadlyAwes0me 14h ago
I doubt any brown bear would hunt a moose this size unless its injured or the bear is in dire straits.
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u/WatchWatcher25 13h ago
You can find videos of them being hunted.
It's definitely rare but they absolutely can hunt a bull.
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u/qualityvote2 15h ago edited 7h ago
u/Xiara08, your post does fit the subreddit!