“Flekkulf” in Hallingdal is dead – NRK Buskerud – Local news, TV and radio

At the weekend, Hole municipality received a phone call from a couple of hikers who said they had found the spotted “celebrity eel” in Hovet in Hallingdal.

“It’s dead,” read the message.

Outdoor adviser in Hole municipality, Torkil Dokk, got ready for a routine check and examination.

– But before I had found equipment and got dressed to go out and look at it, I received a message that it was still alive, he says.

The moose reportedly both blinked and moved when the hikers approached it.

Nevertheless, life was unfortunately not to be saved.

– It was lying with its legs up against a rock and was completely finished. I could walk right up to it, and it was just barely touching my ear and my leg. There was no reaction to be had, even if you almost nudged it, says Dokk.

Necessary samples were taken:

• CVD (Chronic Wasting Disease) for leprosy
• Rough field check for condition
• Teeth/jaw for age analysis
• Margin for nutritional status

According to the field advisor, the moose was emaciated and very thin. There and then it was quickly decided that it should be euthanized.

– It was so sick and weak that it would probably have succumbed within the next day or hour, notes Dokk.

It was Hallingdølen who mentioned the matter first.

Cause of death: Long and tough winter

In 2022/2023, 3,678 dead moose were recorded in Norway. This is shown by figures from the Hjortviltregisteret.
Moose felled by hunters are not included in the statistics.

Erling Johan Solberg is a senior researcher at the Norwegian Institute for Natural Sciences.

– The figures show moose that have been found and registered. You have to remember that there are many animals that are not found and reported, he says.

Solberg says that with a cold and long winter, the number of dead moose can quickly double. In short, snowy winters mean that the possibility of finding food shrinks.

– At this time of year, it is not unusual for many moose to die of hunger; then they have used up their reserves. When it is also cold and snowy, as it has been in many places in Norway this year, the moose move closer to the road – and we also get more collisions, explains Solberg.

The queen of the forest had to abdicate

It was in December that the moose became a national celebrity. Almost more pop than Santa Claus and influencers. “Flekkulf” bore its name with right and dignity. The spots were due piebaldism.

– I have never seen this before, said university lecturer and zoologist Petter Bøckmann to NRK when he was shown the pictures of the rare moose.

Many tried to catch a glimpse of the rare moose – and not least to secure a picture of it.

Leif Johnny Nestegard managed that when he was plowing up county road 50 in Hovet on a beautiful January day. Not only by “Flekkulf”, but by two other moose as well.

“Flekkulf” had made friends and apparently lived well in the deep forests. But that was then.

– Now moose often tolerate the winter well. But it has been a very long winter with us. There is hardly anything green to be found, and we are almost in May, says Dokk.

He adds that they find deer, roe deer and another moose at this time – animals that have not made it through the long winter.

– Is it the case that you find an unusual number of starving animals now?

– Not unusually many. But the winter has been tough, and that’s how it tends to be when we have long, somewhat heavy winters. It is unfortunately common for young animals to die at this time after long winters.

For the record. “Flekkulf”, previously referred to as the king of the forest, was a queen of the forest. The heifer was one and a half years old.