Moose/Elk

[Dom]

Right, i have a question that has been muddling me for a while.

Moose, are the largest deer species, huge antlers, wattle thing under the chin, and live in North America and Europe.

Elk, or Wapiti are large deer, big pointy antlers.

Now why are moose, reffered to as elk in Europe? Surley as diffrent species this is very confusing.....

Well it certinaly confused me.

Thanks

 

[redpanda]

I believe the name elk originated in europe for the European Elk (a moose), but when explorers went to america they believed, because of its size, that the wapiti was related to the european elk so named it as such. Meanwhile, the native americans called it the wapiti and named their larger relatives the moose which have also stuck. As such, elk can now refer to either, although technically it means moose rather than the wapiti.

That's my understanding of it anyway.

 

[bongorob]

I just use moose and wapiti and ignore elk.

 

[Tim May]

I just use moose and wapiti and ignore elk.

Agreed entirely; not using the word 'elk' avoids all this confusion.

 

[Ituri]

Doesn't work in the western US because 90% of the population has never heard the term 'wapiti', and to these same people 'elk' can only refer to what we know as Cervus elaphus. So here, they are moose Alces americanus and elk Cervus elaphus canadensis

 

[Dom]

Thanks, i might just keep to calling them moose and wapiti from now on.

 

[Maguari]

Thanks, i might just keep to calling them moose and wapiti from now on.

Hooray! A convert!

Agree with Tim and Rob entirely - avoid 'elk' and avoid all this confusion!