When the DEC issued a warning to motorists to take steps to avoid moose-car collisions this past fall, many people scoffed at the notion and did not take it seriously. But due to the increasing number of moose in the Adirondacks it is a real concern, particularly in autumn. Fortunately there have been very few of them, but due to the size of the animal, any collision is a very serious matter.

Since the late 1980s when the first moose began to appear after wandering in from Vermont, there has been a steady increase in the population due to natural reproduction and migration. Population is now estimated to be about 800 moose in NY. But that number is likely to increase rapidly now that the population has reached the “critical mass” of 500, i.e. there are enough moose that the likelihood of moose finding a mate during the fall breeding season is greatly increased.

In colonial times there were moose found in most areas of New York. But unregulated hunting and destruction of habitat eliminated the population during the mid 19th century. Sometime around the Civil War the last moose in the Adirondacks was shot between the North Bay of Raquette Lake and Big Moose Lake. How’s that for irony?

Today, the population is protected by law. Habitat in many areas of the Adirondacks is a mixture of boreal and hardwood forest, some openings of second growth and extensive bogs or swamps. This favors the moose which range over a wide area in search of food.

Moose are “browsers” rather than “grazers.” Because they lack upper teeth in the front of their mouth they tend to bite off shoots of saplings, strip bark from young trees, or eat aquatic plants. Aquatic plants like water lilies or pond weeds often provide half of their food supply much of the year since they supply the sodium moose need in their diets. Wading in the ponds in summer also helps cool the animals off and provide relief from biting insects.

Moose are generally solitary animals but you may see several together in the fall during mating season. Ranging from five to nearly seven feet high at the shoulder, bulls will weigh between 600 and 1200 pounds. Cows will weigh 500–800 pounds. The bull’s antlers which are shed after mating season, can often reach a span of five feet.

Calves are born in late May or early June. Although a cow may have twins, single calves are most common. Typically the calf will stay with its mother until the following spring when she drives it away. In New York the animal’s only significant predator is the bear which will feed on calves.

Although moose are generally non-aggressive — except for a bull during mating season — you definitely want to stay clear of a cow moose with a calf. They will attack you and lash out with powerful legs and sharp hooves. During my last trip to Alaska I was frequently reminded to be on the watch and avoid areas where cows with a calf were known to frequent. Moose attack more people than wolves and bears combined.

Moose-car collisions are most likely in autumn when there is traffic at dusk or dawn and moose are more likely to wander further from their home. They are particularly dangerous because the dark bodies are often above the main beam of the car’s headlights. A smaller car is likely to pass under the body or else the grill area will strike and break the legs. The result is the body of the moose coming through the windshield or the roof.

In some areas like the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska they deliberately cut all trees and brush many feet back from the road sides to give both motorists and moose a better chance to avoid collision. Imagine how some of the eco-fascist Adirondack preservationist groups would react to that idea!

Some people ask if there is any likelihood of a moose hunting season in New York State. Certainly if the population increases at a faster rate as many predict and there is sufficient population that is a very real possibility in the future. There is some movement within the NYS Conservation Council to pass legislation allowing the DEC to regulate and establish a season if that time arrives.

This is unlikely in the near future, but the goal is to let professionals decide on such a move, rather than some ill-advised legislation as we have witnessed this year. For now the DEC is studying the population to get an accurate estimate of numbers, key habitat areas, and other factors influencing movement, survival, etc.

In the meantime, many people are enjoying the unexpected thrill of seeing a moose. One person who had a tree stand near Rondaxe Lake was deer hunting and looked down to see a bull and two cows bedded down nearby. My friend Dave VanPelt heard something coming down the driveway of his camp at Big Moose while he relaxed in a lawn chair. He looked around and saw a cow moose about 30 feet away. Of course, many people saw the cooperative big bull moose that was feeding at Helldiver Pond in the Moose River Plains last summer for several weeks. Sue Kiesel has some great photos of that moose for sale at Souvenir Village in Old Forge.

Although many people hope to see a big antlered bull standing broadside in the road or trail ahead of them, that is unlikely. But if you want a realistic chance to see a moose take a trip to the Moose River Plains beyond Inlet. Take a stroll down a hiking trail to Mitchell Ponds and look off in the swamps or bogs to the side. If you are lucky and observant you might be rewarded with the sight of a cow and calf.

In any case, the return of the Adirondack moose population makes a fascinating story that all outdoorsmen can follow with interest.

SHORT CASTS

EASTERN SPORTS SHOW BUS TRIP: The Chittenango Rod and Gun Club is sponsoring a one-day bus trip to the Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show in Harrisburg, PA., on February 11.

The trip will be by a Caz Limo Luxury Motor Coach which will leave Dewitt at 5 a.m. and return about 10 p.m. Refreshments and snacks are provided. Cost is $60 per person and includes your ticket to the show. For more information or to reserve your seat contact Buce Berean at 315-439-0260.

CORR NAMED TO CFAB: Congratulations to Dave Corr of New Hartford who was recently named to the Conservation Fund Advisory Board (CFAB). This agency is entrusted with oversight of the NYS Conservation Fund which comes from the sale of sporting licenses and is used for conservation related purposes. Corr will bring his considerable experience with sporting organizations and knowledge of government to good use in looking out for the interests of sportsmen in central New York and across the state.

CNY SHOW: The popular Central NY Sportsman’s Show returns to Oneida’s Kallet Civic Center on February 4. It features the variety of attractions and seminars that has made it successful, including new exhibits and seminars. Among the new attractions this year will be the Daisy Shooting Booth for youngsters sponsored by the NYS Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame. You can also sign up for the special youth hunts or women’s hunts sponsored by the Hall of Fame. Meet and learn the secrets of Jamie Hartman, BASS Angler of the Year at the Lake Ontario Outdoors booth. The popular author’s corner will feature new faces, including former Post Standard outdoor columnist Mike Kelly who will be signing his new book “Farewell Old Girl.”

FISHING REPORT: While the milder weather has many people happy because of driving conditions and lack of snow removal chores, other people like snowmobilers and ice fishermen are bemoaning the lack of action. There has been no extended cold spell to create safe ice for ice fishing, but steelhead anglers are taking advantage of the mild weather.

There has been lots of action on the Salmon River with anglers taking steelhead on egg sacks, trout beads, nymphs or egg pattern flies. You might want to fish the section downstream below Pineville to avoid the crowds on the upper river.

Even though the strange weather this winter has disrupted some traditional winter sports, rabbit hunting is one that we can enjoy in many kinds of weather. The variety of ways we can hunt rabbits and the relatively widespread areas where bunnies are found combine to make it a popular winter pastime. Despite having fewer rabbits and fewer rabbit hunters in recent years, it is still a popular sport that can be enjoyed in many ways.

A generation ago we headed to the back pasture or overgrown field and chased up a few bunnies on a Saturday morning. But now these pastures are probably second growth and the abandoned fields are a housing development. These changes have impacted rabbit hunting in a major way.

Abandoned farms may have provided good habitat at first as brush and grass cover increased. But as the plant succession evolved into second growth forests, the high canopy cut down on ground vegetation, depriving rabbits of food and cover. There's about an eight or ten year period before habitat suitable for rabbits seriously declines.

Even on the remaining farms, the changing agricultural practices have meant a shift in rabbit cover. Most farms are now larger scale operations. Rabbits will still be found on these farms but now they will be in different locations. Areas of thick cover, especially if they are located next to a food source are the logical places to find them. Examples of these are the corners of fields that are too wet or steep for the large machinery so they remain untilled and become overgrown with briars and brush.

Woodlots that have been cut and have open areas or piles of brush and tree tops are ideal for rabbits. If they are next to a hay or cornfield, so much the better.

If it seems that rabbits are found in heavier cover than they used to be, it's probably not just your imagination or the effects of age. Many others have commented that you cannot walk through a field and kick rabbits out of the stubble anymore. One theory is that with the increased numbers of predators around, rabbit survival is highest in areas that have the thickest cover.

A similar theory suggests that the large number of predators is also the reason that rabbits are even more nocturnal now. It is not that rabbits think or learn from their experience, after all they aren't rocket scientists. It is simply a matter of natural selection. The dumber ones that inhabited more open areas or were active in daylight didn't survive long enough to reproduce as much.

While rabbits might find food and cover in heavy grass during the summer, the best covers include heavy briars, sumac, grey dogwood or multiflora rose. In winter when the grasses are matted down from snow, the cover of briars and brush or tree tops is more significant. These are the areas you should concentrate on when hunting cottontails.

Quick, fast handling shotguns are called for in rabbit hunting since hunters are often presented with a bounding target amidst openings in thick cover. Most hunters use number 6 or 7-1/2 shot.

Early morning or late afternoon are the best times since cottontails are most likely to be active then.

Prime time for snowshoe hares is early morning after a fresh snowfall since fresh tracks provide optimum scent and less confusing trails for the hounds to follow.

Hunters without dogs can enjoy the sport and be successful. One way is to walk through the heavy cover, pausing frequently. The pause often unnerves the rabbit and makes it think it's been spotted so they will burst from cover. Be ready to shoot when you pause.

A good method is to have two hunters walk parallel through cover, pausing to stomp brush piles, fallen tree tops, or other cover. Remember that the thicker the cover, the better the cottontails like it. Heavy duty briar pants are called for when rabbit hunting.

A method that can be used with several hunters is to post some hunters at likely escape routes, while one or more hunters zig-zag through the cover, pausing frequently or stomping brush piles. It is important that all hunters wear blaze orange and be aware of where everyone is.

If you find rabbits in an area that isn't too thick, it is possible for a single hunter to stalk quietly and hunt them with a .22. The best time is usually in the morning if rabbits are sunning themselves in front of their burrows.

Yes, rabbit hunting is changing, like many other things. But one thing that hasn't changed is the fun and challenge of hunting one of our most common, yet elusive game animals.

SHORT CASTS

CNY SPORTSMANS SHOW: Save the date of February 4 for the always popular Central NY Sportsmans Show. There will be the usual mix of tackle vendors, conservation groups, guides and exhibitors. You will have the chance to meet and talk with expert deer and turkey hunters, as well as various anglers. New this year for youngsters will be the Daisy Shooting Booth sponsored by the NYS Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame. Youngsters can also sign up for the special youth turkey hunt with an ECO, as well as the ever popular exhibit by the Utica Zoo. The new lineup of attractions and seminars will be publicized in the next few weeks.

2011 IN PASSING: We avoided the traditional year-in-review column last weekend, but a few people were commenting on a lot of things about the past year. Obviously for a lot of things including the economy, natural disasters, international affairs and domestic politics the news for 2011 was generally bad.

Even though we don’t pretend that events in the world affecting the outdoors compares to the things above, 2011 was not a good year either for a lot of things. Certainly the heavy rains and flooding in May and the effects of Hurricane Irene on the High Peaks of the Adirondacks and the Catskills were devastating. Most important of course was the human tragedy that they caused. But streams were destroyed and subsequent re-channeling to rebuild roads have left many of them unsuitable as fish habitat.

The cold wet weather in mid May was bad for nesting birds and the grouse and turkey populations have shown this decline in many areas. Invasive species continued to spread and show up in new places despite the efforts of many people or groups.

Hunting violations seemed to show a surge in numbers in most areas. One local ECO commented that in his many years of service he has never seen so many serious violations around this area. Violations ranging from shooting deer out of season, using guns during bow season, jacking or hunting at night, carrying loaded firearms in motor vehicles and similar crimes were rampant as a report from the Watertown Office regarding Region 6 has shown.

Hopefully all that is behind us and the sporting opportunities as well as the behavior of a small segment of the population will improve greatly in 2012.

ADIRONDACK EXPOSURE – FLORIDA STYLE: For those who may be heading for Florida for part of the winter, but are looking for more adventure than just dodging alligators on the golf course or the happy hour at the condo complex, there is an answer. Scott Locorini, owner of the popular Adirondack Exposure outfitter and guide service, is offering various guided kayak expeditions in Florida. Trips such as Cedar Key, the Everglades, Big Bend or Suwanee River offer a variety of experiences. For more information, contact Scott at scott@adirondackexposure.com or visit www.adirondackexposure.com

FISHING REPORTS: Steelhead fishermen have been doing well in the upper part of the Salmon River between Pineville and Altmar by fishing the heads or tails of the pools. Wooly Buggers, egg sucking leeches, or estaz eggs have worked well.

For fishing reports from eastern Lake Ontario to the Niagara River and major tributaries like Oak Orchard River, visit www.FishNY.com or www.lakeontariooutdoors.com

SYRACUSE SHOW RETURNS: The Northeastern Sports Show at the Syracuse Fairgrounds was canceled. But recently, Wight-Ox Productions — who are involved with the Rochester outdoors show — announced that it is resurrecting the show and will hold the New York Sportsmans Expo at the Horticulture Building at the Fairgrounds. Dates are January 27–29 and there will be a new emphasis on conservation groups as well as manufacturers and sporting tackle vendors.