fyi below here. My biggest jaw drop isn't so much the actual survey numbers but rather the remark from the MN DNR that a decrease to 3,030 from 3,710 is called STATISTICALLY UNCHANGED!!! Not sure how the DNR does their calc's but I would say a 20% drop to be a CHANGE. Not sure what they are smoking??
Next comes the topic of wolves..........and go
;:;popcorn[h=1]Moose population remains low but stable for aseventh year [/h][h=2]Population estimate statistically unchanged from last year’sestimate[/h]Results of the 2018moose survey indicate the moose population in northeastern Minnesota remainsstable but relatively low for the seventh year in a row, according to theDepartment of Natural Resources.
“While thepopulation appears stable, low numbers of moose are still a major concern forthe DNR,” said DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr. “We continue to pursue the bestscience, research and management tools available to us to help Minnesota’smoose.”
The 2018 aerialmoose survey estimated 3,030 moose in northeastern Minnesota, statisticallyunchanged from last year’s estimate of 3,710. The survey is statisticallysound, but there is inherent uncertainty associated with such surveys, becauseresearchers will never see and count all of the animals across the 6,000 squaremile survey area. Statistically, the DNR is 90 percent certain that thepopulation is between 4,140 and 2,320 moose.
“The stability ofmoose numbers in recent years provides a reason for some optimism – after all,we’re not facing a significant decline,” said Glenn DelGiudice, DNR moose anddeer project leader. “But this year’s results would be more palatable had theyreflected the beginning of a turnaround in the population trend.”
Each year thepopulation estimate is compared to 2006, because the state’s highest moosepopulation estimate of 8,840 occurred that year. Currently, northeasternMinnesota’s moose population is estimated to be 65 percent lower than the peakestimate of 2006.
“While the trend ofstability is encouraging, it does not allow us to forecast the futuretrajectory of the population,” DelGiudice said.
Reproductivesuccess and adult survival have the greatest impact on the annual performanceand dynamics of the moose population over time.
“Our field researchhas shown that annual pregnancy rates of adult females in this population havebeen robust,” DelGiudice said. “But it is a challenge to maintain a high numberof adult females that can become pregnant, produce calves and rear them to 1 yearof age.”
Survey results alsoindicate that calf survival to January has been relatively stable, butconsistently low. Field studies have indicated that it is even lower by spring,translating to low numbers of moose calves living through their first year.Importantly, the DNR’s detailed investigations have shown that wolf predationhas consistently accounted for about two-thirds of the calf mortality comparedto one-third of the adult mortality.
Annual aerial moosesurveys have been conducted each year since 1960 in the northeast. Adjustments were made in 2005 to make the survey more accurate and annualresults more comparable.
This year’s survey involved flying in 52 survey plots distributed acrossnortheastern Minnesota’s moose range from Jan. 3 to Jan. 13. The Fond du LacBand of Lake Superior Chippewa and 1854 Treaty Authority contributed fundingand provided personnel for the annual moose survey.
Next comes the topic of wolves..........and go
;:;popcorn[h=1]Moose population remains low but stable for aseventh year [/h][h=2]Population estimate statistically unchanged from last year’sestimate[/h]Results of the 2018moose survey indicate the moose population in northeastern Minnesota remainsstable but relatively low for the seventh year in a row, according to theDepartment of Natural Resources.
“While thepopulation appears stable, low numbers of moose are still a major concern forthe DNR,” said DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr. “We continue to pursue the bestscience, research and management tools available to us to help Minnesota’smoose.”
The 2018 aerialmoose survey estimated 3,030 moose in northeastern Minnesota, statisticallyunchanged from last year’s estimate of 3,710. The survey is statisticallysound, but there is inherent uncertainty associated with such surveys, becauseresearchers will never see and count all of the animals across the 6,000 squaremile survey area. Statistically, the DNR is 90 percent certain that thepopulation is between 4,140 and 2,320 moose.
“The stability ofmoose numbers in recent years provides a reason for some optimism – after all,we’re not facing a significant decline,” said Glenn DelGiudice, DNR moose anddeer project leader. “But this year’s results would be more palatable had theyreflected the beginning of a turnaround in the population trend.”
Each year thepopulation estimate is compared to 2006, because the state’s highest moosepopulation estimate of 8,840 occurred that year. Currently, northeasternMinnesota’s moose population is estimated to be 65 percent lower than the peakestimate of 2006.
“While the trend ofstability is encouraging, it does not allow us to forecast the futuretrajectory of the population,” DelGiudice said.
Reproductivesuccess and adult survival have the greatest impact on the annual performanceand dynamics of the moose population over time.
“Our field researchhas shown that annual pregnancy rates of adult females in this population havebeen robust,” DelGiudice said. “But it is a challenge to maintain a high numberof adult females that can become pregnant, produce calves and rear them to 1 yearof age.”
Survey results alsoindicate that calf survival to January has been relatively stable, butconsistently low. Field studies have indicated that it is even lower by spring,translating to low numbers of moose calves living through their first year.Importantly, the DNR’s detailed investigations have shown that wolf predationhas consistently accounted for about two-thirds of the calf mortality comparedto one-third of the adult mortality.
Annual aerial moosesurveys have been conducted each year since 1960 in the northeast. Adjustments were made in 2005 to make the survey more accurate and annualresults more comparable.
This year’s survey involved flying in 52 survey plots distributed acrossnortheastern Minnesota’s moose range from Jan. 3 to Jan. 13. The Fond du LacBand of Lake Superior Chippewa and 1854 Treaty Authority contributed fundingand provided personnel for the annual moose survey.
