Autumn is the most exciting and dynamic time of the year to photograph moose. During this season moose change from being relatively solitary in nature to more social and gregarious. Of course, the main reason for this somewhat drastic behavior change is due to the "rut", or Fall mating season. This is the time of the year when all moose capable of breeding go through hormonal shifts. The bulls lose their velvet antler covering and now display their large and boney rack underneath. Behaviors such as fighting and sparring for dominance between males can be observed, as well as the mating rituals between bulls and cows. A bull moose can be cranky, unpredictable, and will charge if the photographer does not keep a safe distance away. Moose require lots of space! Photography at this time of the year is fast and furious, exciting, and intense! Add all this to a backdrop of New England Fall foliage colors, and viola! |
|
Here is a wonderful example of a "lip curl", or flehmen behavior a bull exhibits in response to the scent of a receptive cow. The bull smells the air for the proper scent that indicates this cows' readiness for mating. Not a real flattering pose for the bull! |
|
|
One rainy afternoon I stumbled upon this handsome young bull resting in the woods. Fortunately for me, he was calm and tolerated my presence. The forest floor was soggy from the rain which helped quiet my footsteps. He even dozed off a couple of times while I photographed him! I was amazed at how beautiful his antlers looked soaking wet - the rain brought out the saturated brown and orange colors of the antlers, while making them appear shiny. In this case, I used my tripod mounted umbrella to keep my camera gear dry. As I recall, exposures were in the 1/8th second range - much to slow to handhold, even with image stabilized lenses. Even though it was raining with raw temperatures and most photographers wouldn't even be out photographing in this weather, I hung in there and I'm glad I did! |
|
Here is a situation involving an adult cow, with her four month old calf in tow, being pursued by a young adult bull moose hoping to mate with her. Notice the larger, older bull moose approaching from the edge of the woods in the background. The younger bull is hoping to mate with the cow, but the larger bull has the same idea for himself! Without any actual contact or major conflict, the larger, dominant bull drove off the smaller bull to claim his prize. The four of them eventually wandered off into the deep woods. |
|
Wildlife photography often requires luck, and this image illustrates that fact. After waiting several hours hoping to photograph moose and not having any luck, suddenly this large bull poked his huge rack through the trees. Although he was immense, he never made a sound as he worked his way through the woods out into the open. Most of the time in the mating season the bulls are crashing and grunting through the woods, giving there position away. I only had few seconds to get within camera range before he disappeared back into the woods. _____________ |
|
... on to Winter |
