Antlering: Hunters and Wildlife Watchers Both Love Collecting Antlers

You can congratulate me now: I just received an antlering permit from Utah after passing the 2010 Antler Gathering Ethics Course. I only got 95%, but they let me redo the question I missed. As gathering antlers shed in the winter by moose, elk and deer gets more popular among both hunters and wildife watchers, states are regulating the hobby so we don't stress out the ungulates when they're practically starving. It's gotten so bad, even libertarian Wyoming has rules this year.


Utah's online "class" is really to teach you not to follow or harass the animals. They don't want people stalking  deer and elk in the winter and spring, when they could be stressed and starving. Even in a good year 40% of yearling deer and 20% of adults die, I learned. The stress of winter--low food, temperatures and light--can kill them off even into the spring. Expending energy to run away from somebody looking for antlers is the last thing they need. In a podcast, Anis Aoude, Utah's Big Game Coordinator, says he's caught people chasing animals around, waiting for their antlers.

The various species can loose antlers November through March. Aoude says shedding the antlers every year might help the animals survive because predators know that males are weak after the rut. The Utah rules say you have to have a permit to hunt for antlers in the spring; Wyoming, home of the National Elk Refuge, just bans horn hunters from December through April. If you don't manage to gather any for yourself, the Boy scouts will still gather antlers for Jackson Hole's annual antler auction and Elk Fest in May.

Where to Go to See Elk and Deer

 See More Wild Animals Out West

Moose moving to new herds

In the last couple weeks we've seen a lot of helicopter rides for the moose around Ogden, Utah.

Nineteen moose that had been wandering into the city were moved to the Upper White River/Flat Tops area, according to the Daily Sentinel. There are moose there, but not a lot. They travelled by helicopter sling and livestock trailer to the North and South forks of the White River and along Marvine Creek.

Another 20 moved to Colorado, according to the Deseret News. Last year wildlife officials got 60 calls about moose around.

Instead of using drug darts, the helicopter crews shoot a net over the moose, handcuff their hooves, blindfold them to keep them calm, then get a dozen men to carry them to a trailer.

Colorado used to trade bighorn sheep for the moose; now they just pay for them. The Craig Daily Press quotes Colorado Wildlife officials saying there probably weren't moose here originally; they just wanted them to attract tourists.

I don't know if responding to complaints of just seeing moose is all that sound of a management plan. Or bringing in a new species for a tourist attraction. In fact, I'm pretty sure neither is. But I'm glad the moose are going somewhere that somebody isn't going to call the cops just for seeing them. And I do think they'll be something tourists want to see.