Another moose has been hit in Tokke municipality. This is the eighth moose that has been hit in the municipality in January alone. The municipality aims to have only ten traffic-killed animals during the year. With eight dead animals in the first month of the year, it is a goal they can most likely look forward to, says forest and range advisor in Tokke municipality, Per Wraa. Per Wraa is a forest and range advisor in Tokke municipality. Photo: Lars Tore Endresen / news Now the municipality has taken action. Due to the large amounts of snow, they encourage landowners to drive snowmobile trails where moose naturally stay to areas with good winter grazing. – In other words, don’t drive near and along the road, but away from the road, says Wraa. Nore and Uvdal municipalities have also taken similar measures. Fortunately, it went well for the driver this time, who escaped with a broken windscreen. Photo: Lars Tore Endresen / news Take the call – Are you afraid that wild driving may occur and that people will take advantage of this? – There is always a risk, but I still believe that those who want to take advantage of this opportunity do so as intended. One person who has accepted the call from the municipality is landowner Morten Berge Frantzen. Landowner Morten Berge Frantzen wants to help the animals struggling in the snow. Photo: Lars tore Endresen / news He has seen the animals struggling in the deep snow. – The moose has a sub so deep that he has, in a way, messed with his body. It will probably be a bit heavy. It’s like a person walking with snow for life and breaking through, says Frantzen. The tracks in the snow show how the elk has plowed its way through the high plowed edges. Photo: Lars Tore Endresen / news As the landowner of a large area, he has chosen to both clear tracks for deer game with a tractor, but also drive tracks with a scooter. – All men leave now when there is so much snow. It will settle when driving two or three times back and forth. It helps the animals immensely. Preventing dangerous situations The hunting corps are the ones who react when a game is hit. Knut Gaastjønn is the leader of the Tokke Hunting Corps. He believes the municipality’s action can prevent dangerous situations. – As much snow as there is in the terrain now, it will probably help quite a bit. Knut Gaastjønn, leader of the Tokke Hunting Corps. Photo: Lars Tore Endresen / news Many moose and deer also die of exhaustion due to the deep snow. Scooter tracks will also help these. But it is the course of nature that not all of them make it through the winter, says the corps leader. – We have such a large moose population that we will probably always have a number of animals that die when we have a proper winter like now. But it is probably a little early in the winter that we see it as much as we do now. Increase in the number of wild game collisions Figures from Statistics Norway (SSB) show that the number of wild game collisions has increased by just under 10 per cent in one year. Most wildlife collisions are in Viken, Innlandet and Trøndelag. In Tokke municipality, there were 20 collisions in 2022, only three years earlier there were only five. If you should be unlucky enough to run over an animal, it is important to mark the spot and notify the police on 02800.
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Uses snowmobiles to prevent wildlife collisions – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
