Last Saturday we welcomed Matt Tinker, Registered Maine Guide and moose caller extraordinaire, who did an amazing presentation for an excited audience in the Ranger Station. Matt has his own guide service taking wildlife photographers, hunters and animal fanciers into the forests of Maine where he helps them find animals like moose. On Saturday, he showed us moose and deer antlers and pelts so we could compare their sizes. He also demonstrated a baby moose’s call to its mother and some of the sounds an adult moose can make. Using homemade recycled tools, he also replicated many of the sounds a moose can make without using his voice! He even used a puddle of water to show the sound a moose makes when it walks through water and eats lily pads. Everyone learned how to make at least one sound like a moose.
Here are just a few of the other things we learned from Matt during his visit:
• A baby moose can weigh 35 pounds when it is born.
• A moose can live up to 25 years.
• A male moose loses his antlers every year, then squirrels, mice, and other small mammals chew on them to get minerals.
Thank you, Matt, for sharing your skills and knowledge!
