Up-Close Sightings Delight Northwest Trek Wildlife Park Visitors
Marvelous Moose. Moose Mania. Moose Musings. Call it by just about any fun name you can think of, because there’s never been a better time for an up-close moose sighting at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park.
Most people can hardly wait to post photos on social media — and tell family and friends about their “encounter.”
And the fascination seems to go both ways. The young Idaho moose, now on exhibit in the central area of the wildlife park, sometimes seems as curious about visitors as they are about her. She often cozies up to the center mound of her exhibit, watching people go by. And sometimes she stares into the windows of the Baker Research Cabin — and finds people looking back.
The female moose made her debut in the former wolf exhibit over the fall, and she’s quickly becoming a “must see” animal at Northwest Trek. Two moose live in the Free-Roaming Area, and visitors often can spot them during the tram tour.
But the new moose exhibit along the walking path allows visitors time to stand and watch the young cow as she browses through the foliage for food.
From rough beginnings, the moose has found a home and grown healthy at Northwest Trek.
“She meets keepers at the gate ready for treats and enrichment daily,” Keeper Angela Gibson said. “She appears to be interested in visitors and can regularly be found watching them at the viewing deck or in the cabin.”
Visitors have taken note. A throng of onlookers lines up along the railing to watch the moose in her natural forest habitat. Parents hoist small children onto their shoulders; amateur photographers whip out cell phones or focus long lenses and professional-grade cameras at the moose, hoping to snap just the right souvenir picture.
Gibson says visitors are often taken aback by the moose cow’s size – the adolescent weighs in at about 700 pounds.
Not far away along the paved walkways, three wolf pups and five fox kits also draw crowds to their respective exhibits.
The three little wolves frequently play in the water or on top of the boulders, which serve as their lookout, in the former black bear exhibit space.
The five fox kits are a bit more reserved, often piled together toward the back of their exhibit, lying in the ferns. And they frequently busy themselves by pulling up vegetation, chewing on sticks and digging — like a pack of puppies!
Test Your Moose IQ
What’s the estimated moose population in Washington?
What is the large flap of hair-covered skin that hangs beneath a moose’s throat?
How large can a bull moose’s antlers grow, measured from one tip straight across to the other side?
How much do the average male and female moose weigh?
Where would you find a herd of moose?
Moose IQ answers
At least 1,000.
It’s called a bell.
The “spread” of their antlers can be as much as 6 ½ feet.
Males, or bulls, weigh in at 850 to 1,100 pounds. Cows weigh 600 to 800 pounds.
It’s not likely: Moose tend to be loners, except for mothers, who keep their calves close by.