The Moose page contains 56 images of female moose browsing at daybreak while waiting for
the sunrise at Floating Island Lake, and both male and female moose foraging in the late winter
snow alongside a tributary of the Gibbon River at the edge of a meadow near Norris Junction.

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There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0183

A female moose approaches the edge of Floating Island Lake on the Blacktail Plateau at dawn.
Moose are not common in Yellowstone as the elevation is a bit too high, and they are a reclusive
animal as well, so sightings are rare. These females apparently came out of the forest to watch
the sunrise from Floating Island Lake in north Yellowstone on a cool late September morning.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0187

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0192

After bears and wolves, moose are the third most commonly desired sighting in Yellowstone, so when I was
taking a student to the Lamar Valley at dawn and saw these two females approaching the lake, we changed
our plans immediately to stay with them until they left the area. The light was quite low, and these shots were
taken with a 300mm lens, wide open at f/2.8 (1/60 sec. at ISO 400, for photographers who are interested).

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0194

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0200

Moose are the largest species in the deer family, and are generally solitary, reclusive animals.
The moose population in North America has been in decline since the 1990s, caused by several
factors including heat stress from global warming, unregulated hunting and reintroduction of wolves.

There are fewer than 200 moose in Yellowstone, and the population has declined in the last 40 years
due to loss of the old growth forests and hunting outside the park, burning of habitat, and predators.
The moose population declined drastically in 1988 following widespread fires which burned much
of the mature fir forest. Over one third of the park was burned, and since woody browse plants
that thrive after fires do not grow in the Yellowstone soil, the combination of loss of habitat
and the exceptionally harsh winter which followed killed off a large number of moose.
The northern range population was especially hard-hit, dropping by 75 percent.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0201

Two female moose browsing alongside Floating Island Lake in northern Yellowstone at dawn.
Both male and female moose have bells (the dewlap of skin and hair dangling from the throat).

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0203

A female moose approaches Floating Island Lake as the rising sun begins to paint the water.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0208

A typical moose stands over 6 feet tall at the shoulder, and it is the second largest land animal
in North America after the Bison. Only the males have antlers (although occasionally a female
will grow antlers due to hormonal imbalance). Cows select their mates based on antler size.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0214

Two female moose (cows) await the sunrise at Floating Island Lake in northern Yellowstone.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0216

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0218

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0224

A female moose stands in front of Floating Island Lake at dawn in late September.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0226

Moose weigh 1000 pounds or more, and can live for up to 20 years. Males are larger than females.

The Banner below leads to the Deer and Moose Gallery where images can be selected.

There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0229

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0231

Moose have powerful shoulder muscles which give them a humpbacked appearance.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0233

A female moose looks out over Floating Island Lake at dawn, waiting for the sunrise.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0234

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0236

A 300mm close portrait of a female moose at dawn alongside Floating Island Lake in late September.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0238

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0241

Moose have a distinctive long, bulbous, drooping muzzle with an upper lip that overhangs the lower.
They do not have upper incisors, and nip off twigs between the bony upper palate and lower incisors.

The Banner below leads to the Deer and Moose Gallery where images can be selected.

There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0243

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0244

A female moose eyes the photographer at dawn alongside Floating Island Lake in northern Yellowstone.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0251

A female moose shows her overhanging upper muzzle in a profile made famous by Bullwinkle J. Moose.

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0255 M

A frontal view of a female moose showing the triangular depression at the front of the muzzle.

All of the landscape (horizontal) large version images linked from the thumbnails are 1500 pixels wide.
Portrait (vertical) images are 1200 pixels tall (1290 pixels with title bar). Images designated with an “M”
in the shot number are 5:4 aspect ratio, 1500 x 1290 with a title bar, or 1500 x 1200 without a title bar.
Some of the portrait images are also designated as “M”, and are 1500 pixels tall (plus the title bar).

Moose at Dawn Floating Island Lake 0265

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0267

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0272

A female moose watches as the rising sun paints the waters of Floating Island Lake in late September.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0274 M

The moose asks for the photographer’s opinion on the quality of the light...

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0276

... and nods her head in agreement. This is a look I get from my dog when I tell him it is time for a walk.

The Banner below leads to the Deer and Moose Gallery where images can be selected.

There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0281

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0283

A female moose watches the golden glow of sunrise paint the waters of Floating Island Lake.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0285

This moose is beginning to raise her hackles due to the proximity of the photographer.
Note the hair over the hips... I backed away a bit and the moose started to come up the hill.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0289 M

A close portrait of a slightly annoyed female moose at sunrise alongsid3e Floating Island Lake.

Moose can be quite aggressive, so while I took the close portrait, her hackles were still raised
so I continued to back away. The moose calmed down and then continued to climb up the hill...

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0293

A female moose stands atop a small hill near Floating Island Lake and watches the sunrise.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0294

... that was a tasty sunrise. Well worth the trip out of the forest and the proximity of humans.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0296

The female moose takes one last look at the photographer, raising her hackles slightly...

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0298

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0299

... then she begins to move away, heading back towards the forest to forage for her breakfast.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0300

The female moose pauses considerately for one last close portrait, and then heads into the morning light.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0304

A female moose in the golden glow of sunrise, heading towards the forest beyond Floating Island Lake.

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0315 M

Moose at Sunrise Floating Island Lake 0316 M

The Banner below leads to the Deer and Moose Gallery where images can be selected.

There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose Norris Junction 6982

A male moose in late winter near a tributary of the Gibbon River east of Norris Junction.

Moose Norris Junction 6989

A male moose with its horns just beginning to bud gets a drink near Norris Junction in late winter.

The male moose sheds its antlers after the mating season to conserve energy for the long winter.
The antlers are regrown in the spring, growing to full size in three to five months. Spring comes late in
Yellowstone due to the altitude and latitude of northern Wyoming (these images were taken on May 1st).

Moose Norris Junction 7004

Moose Norris Junction 7016

A female moose looks over a snowbound tributary of the Gibbon River near Norris Junction in Yellowstone.

Moose Norris Junction 7020

A male moose foraging in the shallows of a tributary of the Gibbon River in late winter.

Moose Norris Junction 7038

Exposing to reveal detail in the dark fur while avoiding overexposure of the snow was quite difficult.

The Banner below leads to the Deer and Moose Gallery where images can be selected.

There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

Moose Norris Junction 7044

Moose Norris Junction 7045

A female moose grazes alongside a tributary of the Gibbon River near Norris Junction in late winter.

Moose Norris Junction 7047

A close portrait of a female moose in late winter. Note the characteristic long overhanging muzzle.

Moose Norris Junction 7058

Moose Norris Junction 7059

Only the male moose grows antlers. You can see the new antlers just breaking through the skin
over the pedicles. The antlers grow as cylindrical stems at right angles, then fork into two broad
palmate (hand-shaped) plates with tines on the outer edges. Size and growth rate is determined
by diet and age, and the symmetry is determined by the health. If a moose is castrated either by
accident or chemical means, it will immediately shed its antlers and regrow a set of deformed
asymmetrical antlers which he will bear for the rest of his life, without shedding. These are
called “devil’s antlers”, and are the source of myths and legends in many native tribes.

Moose Norris Junction 7062

Moose Norris Junction 7076

A female moose alongside a tributary of the Gibbon River near Norris Junction in late winter.

Moose Norris Junction 7077 M

A male and female moose grazing in the snow near Norris Junction in late winter.

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There are 67 images in the Moose Gallery.

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