Moose-Vehicle Accidents in Ontario: Relation to Highway Salt

Moose (Alces alces) are strongly attracted to supplementary sodium (Na) during the spring and early summer in large parts of their North American range. This specific appetite appears to account for their attraction to mineral-rich springs (Fraser and Reardon 1980, Tankersley 1981) and may explain their remarkable fondness for Na-rich aquatic plants (Jordan et al. 1973). In Quebec moose are attracted to roadside pools that have a high concentration of dissolved highway salt, and such pools are thought to contribute to the frequency of traffic accidents involving moose (Grenier 1974, 1980). The seasonal peak of moose-vehicle accidents in Ontario occurs in May-July, corresponding to the apparent peak in Na hunger, but not to the period of greatest vehicular traffic (Fraser 1979, 1980). This study reports on moose activity and moose-vehicle accidents in relation to roadside salt accumulations on a section of Ontario highway.