* The Alaskan or Tundra moose, Alces alces gigas (Miller 1899)
* The Shiras or Yellowstone moose, Alces alces shirasi (Nelson 1914)
* The North western moose, Alces alces andersoni (Peterson 1952)
* The Eastern or Taiga moose, Alces alces americana (Clinton 1822)

Moose were relatively late arrivals to North America crossing the Bering Strait Land Bridge from Eurasia during the middle of the fourth and last period of major glaciation known as the Wisconsinian stage about 10,000 to 70,000 years ago. The first humans were thought to have arrived 10,000 to 40,000 years ago by the same route.

The four subspecies are believed to have developed as a result of isolation from the expansion of the ice cap. The expanding ice likely separated a northern Alaska group and pushed three other groups south into three distinct areas. The three southern populations were isolated from each other by natural barriers of vast grasslands.

Blue - Current Moose Range

Green - Historic Moose Range

Mature cows have brown faces and almost black coats. Submature bulls and bulls of low rank have dark brown coats and black faces. Prime age bulls have black faces and parallel dark lines of long guard hairs that run along their torso perpendicular to the ground.

Hearing and sense of smell are very keen to moose. Their eyesight is nearly monoscopic and they must tilt their heads to see things at close range. They have blind spots in front of their forelegs and above their heads. Eyeballs can be moved independent of one another and must be turned downward to see something along their side. This rolling and turning of the eyeballs frequently causes white areas of the eye to be seen. This used to be thought of as a sign of aggression, but it is merely a result of the moose trying to see.

Moose have the largest antlers by mass in the deer family. Only the males grow antlers, which are grown and shed every year. Antlers are composed primarily of calcium and phosphorous. They begin growing in early spring and are the fastest growing bone known, able to grow as much as an inch a day. During the growing stage they are relatively soft and tender and are covered with a fuzzy skin called velvet, which carries blood and nourishment to the growing antlers. In the fall they rapidly harden with an increase in the hormone testosterone, leaving a spongy core. The softer core allows them to flex and absorb the forces of clashing with other males in the battle for females.

Antler size and shape is determined by subspecies, genetics and nutrition. The better the habitat, the better the nutrition

Habitat and Distribution: Moose are found in the northern hemisphere and inhabit a broad band of boreal forests consisting mostly of spruce, firs and pines. They are also found along transition zones between northern forests and prairies. These areas are covered with marshes, willows and interspersed with deciduous trees and conifers. Moose thrive in areas in which fire is a major influence on the habitat. Recently burned areas abound with new growth of willow and birch providing food for moose.

Moose are found in Russia, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Manchuria, China and Czechoslavakia. Their range to the north is limited by food and cover and their southern range is limited by temperature. In a full winter coat moose become heat stressed at temperatures above 23 degrees F and above about 60 degrees in the summer.

Since the retreat of the last ice age, moose are still in postglacial dispersal and are continuing to expand their range. Moose are newcomers to the western states. They were not reported by early trappers and likely started appearing from Canada in the early to mid 1800's. Around 1900, Ernest Thompson Seton a prominent naturalist and artist, calculated the continents moose population to be about 1 million animals. Populations plummeted in the late 1700's and 1800's largely the result of Indians acquiring firearms. Moose meat was valuable and the Indians were able to profit from the sale of the meat. The Hudson Bay company traded guns for the skin and meat of thousands of moose at all of their outposts. Moose disappeared from Pennsylvania in the 1790's, Massachusetts in the early 1800's, New York about 1860 and Vermont and New Hampshire around 1900. By the1950's the eastern moose was found only in northern and central Maine.

Diet: Moose are browsers. They eat primarily leaves and twigs. In the spring and summer moose gorge on aquatic plants because they are very high in sodium. Moose are great swimmers and will actually completely submerge to reach the vegetation. Some of their favorite foods are willow, aspen and birch. They will also at spruce and pine and when starving they will peel the bark from trees to eat the sweet inner park. They are large eaters consuming about 45 pounds of food daily. Moose feed mostly at dawn and dusk.

Reproduction: Moose can begin to breed when they are16-28 months old. The breeding season occurs in late September and early October. Bulls are so preoccupied with seeking cows and fending off other males, that many do not eat at all during this time. Some large bulls succumb to starvation in harsh winters because they used up fat reserves fighting for cows. Only dominant bulls are able to breed. Actual fighting only occurs between equally matched bulls.

The calves are born May-June after a gestation of 230 days. Twin and triplet births are common. The calves are weaned in autumn, but stay with the cow the first winter.