Two moose wandered into the heart of Trondheim on Wednesday, startling passersby as they strolled along the river Nidelva, through a city park and then into a popular residential area. Their urban adventure, though, ended on a sad note.
Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) reported that the two large moose were first spotted by bicyclists and people walking to work in town along Nidelva Wednesday morning. The huge animals seemed oblivious to the cyclists whizzing by and prompted pedestrians to suddenly step aside as they passed.
See video from NRK here. (In Norwegian, but click on the photo on NRK’s website and follow along, even if you don’t understand the voiceover. “Spill” means “play!”)
The moose ultimately settled down on some grass between trees along the riverbank until, rested, they resumed their city tour after having wandered a bit through the residential area of Bakklandet, just outside the city center. Then they rested in the garden of a local homeowner, while the family cat ventured outside to keep an eye on them.
Their tour continued in the afternoon at Møllenberg, then to Festningen and beyond Singsaker to Eberg.
Their trip to town ended tragically, however. Local wildlife officials had hoped the moose would return to the forest on their own, but they didn’t. Conservation authorities claim they eventually became aggressive, and ordered them shot Wednesday evening.
“There also were many curious passersby who went too close to the animals,” a wildlife official told NRK.
The moose were shot in a valley at Eberg around 6pm.
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