Researchers to Track Moose Eating Habits

Researchers to Track Moose Eating Habits

AP

They won’t be ordering out for pizza, but scientists hope to track the eating habits of 25 moose that are being tagged with cell phones.

Seven times a day, the specially built phones will send automatic SMS updates to researchers at the University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala, 34 miles north of the capital, Stockholm.

SMS, or short message service, are quick-text messages sent by wireless phones.

The moose, who live in northern Sweden, will be tagged Monday with the cell phones, each of which contains a built-in global positioning system. Scientists hope to track their movement across the northern part of the country.

Sweden, a Scandinavian country of 8.9 million, is one of the world’s most wired countries and the reach of cell phone networks is extensive.

University spokesman Goeran Eriksson said the moose will be tranquilized by sharpshooters in a helicopter. While the animals are sleeping, the phones will be put on them.

The 1 million kronor ($118,000) project will take four years, but the moose will only serve one-year stretches.

Eriksson told The Associated Press that the phones have enough battery power to last about a year. The phones will be recharged and repaired annually and put on 25 new moose.

Sweden is home to more than 250,000 moose.

More science, space, and technology from RedNova

Copyright © 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.