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State Mammals & Animals
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Alaska Symbols
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Alaska State Mammal
Moose
(Alces alces)
Adopted on May 1, 1998.
The moose, Alces alces, was made the official Alaska land mammal when Governor Tony Knowles signed SB 265 into law on May 1, 1998. Moose can be found from the Unuk River in Southeast to the Arctic Slope, but are most abundant in second-growth birch forests, on timberline plateaus and along major rivers of Southcentral and Interior. They are not found on islands in Prince William Sound or the Bering *Sea, on most major islands in Southeast, on Kodiak, or the Aleutians groups.
The Moose is the largest member of the deer family. They are usually dark brown in coloration with long hair. They occasionally have a hairy pendant of skin hanging below their throat. A moose has large ears and a huge, pendulous muzzle. They have long legs and visible humps above the shoulders. The most striking feature of the moose are the antlers (found only in the male moose.) Unlike reindeer antlers, the antlers of a moose are very broad and flat. The largest recorded antler spread was over 6 feet wide. On average, they are 4.5 feet. Moose are excellent swimmers. They can swim at speed up to 6 miles per hour.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
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| Kingdom |
Animalia -- animals |
| Phylum |
Chordata -- chordates |
| Subphylum |
Vertebrata -- vertebrates |
| Class |
Mammalia |
| Order |
Artiodactyla |
| Family |
Cervidae |
| Sub Family |
Capreolinae |
| Genus |
Alces |
| Species |
Alces alces |
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50 State Resource Guide
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