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A pair of Adirondack moose were killed in separate motor vehicle accidents Friday night.
The first incident occurred at about 8:30 p.m. on state Route 30, just north of the Meacham Lake Outlet. According to a state Department of Environmental Conservation statement, a female yearling moose was struck by an unknown vehicle.
An environmental conservation police officer and a state police trooper responded to the scene and found the dead moose, according to the DEC. The officers reported seeing an adult moose standing in the nearby wetland.
At about 9:30 p.m. that same night a male yearling moose was struck by a pickup truck on state Route 30 between Tupper and Long Lake – about 400 yards south of Sportsmen’s Spring.
The driver reported seeing a total of three moose, a cow moose with two yearlings, before striking one of the yearlings, according to the DEC. A state trooper responded to the incident, observed that the moose’s back was broken and euthanized the moose.
DEC removed the head and internal organs both of the moose and sent them to the DEC Wildlife Health Unit for necropsy and testing.
No further details about either incident were available.
Moose cow and calf photo by the late Dennis Aprill, courtesy Adirondack Moose Festival, Indian Lake.
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It’s that time of year for dead animals on the roads.Dead moose, deer, beaver, birds, snakes, turtles, skunks…. We don’t look out for the animals when we drive we’re like zombies going from point A to point B. The animals have hardly a chance if they happen upon a road. And some people insist we allow motor access to what remains of the wild areas.
…At least the one guy stopped, reported it and they were able to end it’s suffering…
The other may have been DUI…
Deer and moose chase away their previous year’s offspring just prior to giving birth. Quite often, it’s those one-year-olds that get hit on the roadways in the Spring.
Hope they ended up giving the meat to a needy family or charity like they do in Alaska and Maine.
Serious question – would you eat roadkill? Personally – I would rather donate money to a service to feed the poor than give them roadkill. I’d be fine donating for a animal shelter or rehab – but not for people.
Use your high beams – you can see wildlife far enough out to slow down and avoid.
Charlie S, I’m with you – most forests have roads dissecting them – the few areas we have spared don’t need roads going through them or into them.
Moose are the most dangerous animal to encounter on a roadway. Their coat is dark and doesn’t reflect light and an adult’s moose eyes are too high to reflect headlights. They also tend to stand their ground and not flee as deer usually do. Hitting an adult moose, which could be up to a thousand pounds in weight, will usually cut their legs and flip the body into the windshield or onto the roof.
Best precaution in moose country is to slow down at night and not go faster than your headlights can illuminate.
Most people I have talked to that have encountered moose at night say they basically see a big black hole in front of them, as they are so dark. As you say best bet is to drive slow at night. I started driving in rural PA that was filthy with deer. If you weren’t always on your guard, you could end up with one in your lap.
For crying out loud folks, Maine has more Moose than New York, NH and Vermont put together with dirt roads/logging roads intersecting vast sections of woodlands throughout that State. Trucks/ logging trucks, logging equipment, etc., etc. are constantly plying these backwoods roadways with abundant wildlife populations throughout that State.
This “drama” that you project regarding roads in wild areas is a little too much to bear by anyone that has actually had experience in the back country and the effect or rather lack of serious effect on wildlife populations. With millions of acres of ADK land already locked up to the point that the vast majority of New Yorkers will never be able to access or view its beauty, it’s time to start thinking of a more realistic approach and provide more access to “everyone” !
T-B,
I am not sure what point you are trying to make.
Yea! T-B, what is your point. Logging and back woods equipment in the day time are going a darn sight slower than a car or truck at 65 mph on Rte 30
at dusk or night.
Wow. Population density has more of an impact on animal populations and habitat.
For one thing – Maine is bigger than Vermont and New Hamp. put together. It is also less densely populated than both – to say nothing of upstate NY. So unless you advocate de-populating much of upstate NY to be at Maine density – your argument doesn’t add up.
In any event – in recent years the logging industry has been cited as impacting wildlife more now that weather patterns are changing. Which is another reason moose love northern Maine. They prefer the cold.
First of all you’re WRONG, second of all that’s irrelevant to the conversation.
Timothy Dannenhoffer says: “Use your high beams – you can see wildlife far enough out to slow down and avoid.”
Actually Tim it is best if your low beam lights at most are on if you’re driving at night and happen upon an animal in the road. And if it’s not pitch dark and you can slow down enough in time your parking lights would be even better….it is then possible the deer,or whatever animal,might sense danger with a moving object coming towards it in the dark and take off. Remember that in the 1800’s sportsman on lakes put flood lights on the fronts of their boats and when they heard movement the light went on and the deer were blind and frozen and dead meat. Same goes for the roads.
Huh? You can see a lot farther with high beams…….and you would detect the presence of an animal much earlier.
RWB,
It kinda depends on the conditions, but I would say most of the time high beams would be better for the driver. Charlie S was speaking more about the animal’s point of view. The brighter the headlights, the more it can freeze them. But if you can see them, I would think that would be a plus.
Bottom line is, don’t overdrive your headlights. When you are driving with low beams, that usually means between 40-55 mph. But in wooded areas, you are at the mercy of the animals. If they bolt into the road 20 feet ahead, it doesn’t matter what kind of headlights you have – they will be smashed when you hit the animal.
I wonder how well those fancy forward-facing radars work on newer cars? Will they pick up moving animals that can’t be seen – even on the side of the road?
FWIW, I put deer whistles on all of my cars and have never hit one in 45 years – knock on wood. But I have had enough close calls to view them with skepticism.
“Hitting an adult moose, which could be up to a thousand pounds in weight, will usually cut their legs and flip the body into the windshield or onto the roof.”
My dad just mentioned this same thing about moose this morning,that when you hit them they can go through your windshield because they’re so tall. He also knew that in Vermont and New Hampshire the State people put ‘Moose Crossing’ signs up in specific areas. They don’t do that in New York do they? Not that drivers would slow down in these areas where these signs are. In Vermont they slow down in areas where there’s ‘Moose Crossing’ signs. I know because i’ve witnessed it firsthand,I saw drivers headed in the opposite direction going slow and being cautious where these signs were.
There are moose crossing sings around.
‘Just a matter of time before there is a fatality involving a moose/vehicle crash in the Adirondacks, or elsewhere in NY for that matter. I have friend who lives in Northern Maine and when I visit him you are advised not to drive at night, or at least be very careful.
Here’s a concept, SLOW DOWN! I’ve traveled through routes 28 and 30 through the years. People need to slow down. I drive the speed limit which by the way is the law, and someone wants to go faster! Where’s the hurry? You can’t enjoy the beautiful scenery at 70 mph!! They must think that stretch between Long Lake and Tupper is a race track! Most times they pass me wasting gas and endangering themselves and others and I will pull up behind them at the next traffic signal or stop sign.PLEASE SLOW DOWN!
Dan’L says: “I have friend who lives in Northern Maine and when I visit him you are advised not to drive at night, or at least be very careful.”
Like troutstalker says “Slow down.” If you’re going slow enough and you are observant you will not hit a moose. Tell that to your average zombie on the road!
You have no choice but to drive slow up in that part of Maine. Most of the roads are either dirt or in about as good of shape as Route 8 is right now in Bakers Mills. All I can tell you from experience about hitting an animal is that you never know until it happens to you. I’ve seen it happen too many times, including to the most cautious of drivers.
i have spent my life driving routes 28 & 30 as well as northern Maine & Newfoundland.I have had several encounters with moose and the unfortunate usually unavoidable collision along the way. When I hit this moose i was traveling at about 45 mph. with a car behind. I do pay lots of attention to my surroundings when I travel these roads. unfortunately when I was exiting a sharp curve one moose was crossing and the other two jumped the guardrail from a dark ditch this left no place to go. If anyone has see a moose along a roadside at night your fortunate as they are extremely difficult to see. I felt horrible for this animal as I held its head off the ground with a fellow motorist doing all we could to comfort the animal. This animal was not wasted as I along with some help butchered & salvaged all that was possible until 6 the following morning. I then met with DEC with remains for testing. This was not to blame on speed or the lack of paying attention, just the wrong place at the wrong time. I would like to thank all who were involved at the seen. Everyone was very professional & caring.
One of the problems with moose is their height. A shorter animal can be seen against the background of the highway better. But put any animal on stilts and a lot less light hits them – meaning less light is reflected back to the driver to see. Also their dark coat virtually absorbs light like a black hole. (It probably helps them absorb more sunlight in winter.) But most people only see their legs, which are a little lighter – but even they aren’t that obvious as we aren’t conditioned to see 4 tree trunks in the middle of the road.
Ahh, too bad. Hope no one was hurt. Yes, I guess it is bound to happen.