Moose are the largest deer on Earth, weighing up to 1,800 pounds, and eating as much as 70 pounds of food a day. Males have very large antlers up to 6 feet wide. They are good swimmers, and killer whales sometimes become predators when moose go swimming in the waters off the northwestern coast of the United States.

Hunted for trophies and meat, in Alaska alone, an estimated 7,000 moose are killed every year. Climate change has caused moose numbers to drop dramatically in some areas, as excessive warmth stops them from foraging for food while they search for shelter from the heat. The atypically warm weather also makes moose more vulnerable to parasites.

Collisions with cars are not uncommon, and because the moose’s center of gravity is above the hood of most cars, people sitting in the front seat are often killed, along with the moose. This phenomenon has produced a vehicle safety test called the “moose test.”