Dean M. Chriss
Photography
Mama Moose, Lunchtime, Grand Teton National Park
(Click image to enlarge)
With her yearling calf and a large bull moose waiting in a nearby meadow, the
cow moose (Alces alces) in this photograph stops to feed on aquatic
vegetation. After expanding for most of the 20th century North American moose
population has been in steep decline since the 1990s. Moose are the largest
extant species in the deer family, typically inhabiting boreal and mixed
deciduous forests in the Northern Hemisphere. They are aquatic mammals and
excellent swimmers that are known to dive underwater to reach plants on lake
bottoms. Moose are the only deer species capable of feeding underwater.