– When the forest comes back in two to four years, there will be a lot of food for the moose and we will see the animals wandering in from adjacent areas, says Göran Ericsson, professor of wildlife ecology at SLU in Umeå.
In the Mensträsk wildlife conservation area in Västerbotten, the land looks like a picture from a dystopian fairy tale. It is estimated that a full 70 percent of their 3,600 hectares of forest has been blown over, and now moose hunting is on the schedule. However, the challenge is enormous and the hunting teams are faced with difficulties they have never experienced before.
– We have decided to try to hunt. There are many who come from the south and have taken vacation for this period, so we will make an attempt and we will see how it goes, says Gert From hunting leader in the Mensträsk wildlife conservation area.
Safety in the first place
Some smaller groves have indeed survived, but they are surrounded by a thicket of trees, which in some places form almost impenetrable barricades of wood. The safety of both hunters and their hunting dogs must be put first, and in some places it is simply impossible to get there by car.
– We have to take the circumstances into account and take it carefully and losing a dog in an accident with falling trees does not exist for us, says Gert From, hunting leader in the Mensträsk wildlife conservation area.
The question everyone is asking is whether there are even any moose left in the area. However, the researchers who have studied the development after previous storms and forest fires give a hopeful picture. According to their analyses, the game will remain in the area and in the long run will even increase in numbers.
– The effect we have seen from other affected areas is that the game remains. The difficult thing is for the hunters to find them again among all the fallen trees and, as I said, when the forest grows back, the land becomes very attractive as a grazing area, which leads to the elk cows becoming large and healthy, which in turn leads to an increased number of calves, says Göran Ericsson, professor of wildlife ecology at SLU in Umeå.
This phenomenon can be difficult to understand for those who live in the area and who have lost significant timber values in the forest. They now face an uncertain elk hunt where previously familiar hunting grounds have turned into a maze of fallen trees.
– You don’t know what to say, It’s depressing, very depressing, says hunt leader Gert From.
So storm Hans can benefit the moose population
But why can the moose benefit from a devastating storm?
• The answer lies in the natural resilience of the forest.
• After a disaster like this, the forest gradually takes back its territory. The felled trees will be broken down by nature, and the open areas that arise will begin to be filled with new vegetation.
• This becomes like a smorgasbord for the moose, who love to graze on fresh shoot forest.