The word "elk" has cognates in other Indo-European languages, e.g. Noting that elk "is not the normal phonetic representative" of the Old English elch, the Oxford English Dictionary derives elk from Middle High German: elch, itself from Old High German: elaho. Later, the species became known in Middle English as elk, elcke, or elke, appearing in the Latinized form alke, with the spelling alce borrowed directly from Latin: alces. By the 8th century, during the Early Middle Ages, the species was known as Old English: elch, elh, eolh, derived from the Proto-Germanic: *elho-, *elhon- and possibly connected with the Old Norse: elgr. In Classical Antiquity, the animal was known as ἄλκη álkē in Greek and alces in Latin, words probably borrowed from a Germanic language or another language of northern Europe. A mature male moose is called a bull, a mature female a cow, and an immature moose of either sex a calf.Īccording to the Oxford English Dictionary, the etymology of the species is "of obscure history". The word "elk" in North American English refers to a completely different species of deer, Cervus canadensis, also called the wapiti. Their mating season in the autumn features energetic fights between males competing for a female.Īlces alces is called a "moose" in North American English, but an "elk" in British English. Although generally slow-moving and sedentary, moose can become defensively aggressive, and move very quickly if angered or startled. Unlike most other deer species, moose do not form herds and are solitary animals, aside from calves who remain with their mother until the cow begins estrus again (typically 18 months after the birth of a calf), at which point the cow chases them away. Predators of moose include wolves, bears, humans, wolverines (rarely, though may take calves), and (rarely, if swimming in the ocean) orcas. Predominantly a browser, the moose's diet consists of both terrestrial and aquatic vegetation, depending on the season, with branches, twigs and dead wood being a large portion of their winter diet. In the United States (outside of Alaska and New England), most moose are found further to the north, west and northeast (including Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming), and they have been documented as far south as western Oklahoma, northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico. Currently, the highest numbers occur in Canada, where they can be found in all provinces (excepting Nunavut and Prince Edward Island) additionally, substantial numbers of moose are found in Alaska, New England (with Maine having the most of the contiguous United States), New York State, Fennoscandia, the Baltic states, the Caucasus region, Belarus, Poland, Eastern Europe, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Russia. The moose has been reintroduced to some of its former habitats. Females with young calves have been documented aggressively chasing vehicles to 'defend' their young, as well as relaxing in public parks or browsing plants in home gardens. Numerous sightings of moose casually walking down city streets have been documented, as well as sightings of young bulls sparring in suburban driveways. However, moose are resourceful and adaptable animals, adjusting to environmental changes and giving-rise to increased sightings of "urban moose" in some areas. In modern times, unregulated hunting, human encroachment and other detrimental activities have all gradually caused a reduction in the size of the moose's range. Hunting, historically, has shaped the relationship between moose and humans, both in Eurasia and North America prior to the colonial era (around 1600-1700 CE), moose were one of many valuable sources of sustenance for tribal groups and First Nations throughout their range. Moose are winter specialists, and typically inhabit the circumpolar boreal forests or temperate broadleaf and mixed forests of the Northern Hemisphere, thriving in cooler, temperate areas as well as subarctic climates. Most adult male moose have distinctively broad, palmate ("open-hand shaped") antlers other members of the deer family have antlers with a dendritic ("twig-like"), pointed configuration. It is the world's tallest, largest and heaviest extant species of deer. The moose is the tallest, and the second-largest, land animal in North America, only falling short of the American bison, in terms of mass. The moose ( pl.: 'moose' used in North America) or elk ( pl.: 'elk' or 'elks' used in Eurasia) ( Alces alces) is the only species in the genus Alces.
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