Woman injured in moose trampling at Anchorage's University Lake Park
May 21—A woman was injured Tuesday by a cow moose with a calf at Anchorage's University Lake Park, authorities said.
The woman was on the popular trail around the lake when she was trampled, according to Anchorage Police Department spokesman Chris Barraza. Officers responded to a call just after 1:45 p.m. and found the woman with "trauma to her lower body," Barraza said.
Anchorage Fire Department medics took her to a hospital, a spokesperson said. Police described the woman's injuries as not life-threatening.
The stomping marked the second such incident involving moose with calves in Anchorage in under a week. A woman and a dog were injured by a moose Friday evening at Kincaid Park.
The woman in Tuesday's incident had a dog with her, according to Cory Stantorf, an Anchorage-based wildlife biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. She was in an area where trees meet open fields near Alaska Pacific University.
The dogs in both cases were reportedly unleashed, Stantorf said. Cow moose tend to be more aggressive when they're protecting calves, and the presence of dogs can escalate an encounter, he said.
State and municipal officials have posted warning signs in the area of the lake, as well as at Kincaid Park.
This time of year, when cow moose are calving and are protecting very young or newborn calves, is the most common time for reports of injuries from tramplings, Stantorf said.
"We have a lot of newborns on the ground with a lot of defensive cows," he said. "People just need to be aware that when they're out walking, hiking, they need to be on alert for cows with newborn calves. And really, give any cow a wide berth and assume it has a calf with it."
He has not had a chance to interview either of the women involved in the recent incidents. Generally, biologists try to get as much information as possible to help get safety messages to the public.
This past winter was easier on moose than usual, with low-snow conditions providing more access to brush and other browse the animals feed on. But there's nothing unusual about conditions this spring that would prompt the recent spate of encounters, Stantorf said.
"We have a good number of moose that call Anchorage home," he said. "It's just unfortunate that these folks were in the same place at the same time" with a moose with at least one calf.
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