MICHIGAN — A cooperative research team successfully captured and collared 41 moose in the western Upper Peninsula this month to study why the region’s population growth has stagnated. The effort, which concluded Feb. 17, 2026, brings the total number of active moose collars in the area to 56.
The project is a collaboration between the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and Northern Michigan University. Researchers are using the collars to collect biological samples and tracking data to better understand moose survival in the core population area.
During the four-day capture event held from Feb. 14-17, the team exceeded its goal of 40 moose by capturing 41 new animals. This group included 20 adult females, 10 adult males and 11 calves. Two additional moose were recollared during the operation.
The team now has a total of 56 collars deployed across the region, which includes moose tagged during the first phase of the project. The research initiative began last winter with the initial collaring of 20 moose to establish a baseline for the study.
Wildlife biologists conducted biological workups on the newly collared moose in the core population area, including sites in Iron County. Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division biologists Clay Buchanan and Kristie Sitar were among the staff members performing these assessments.
Team members characterized the capture event as successful and noted that the biological samples and collar data gathered will be used to analyze moose survival. The project specifically focuses on identifying factors that are influencing population growth in the western Upper Peninsula.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources plans to issue a “Showcasing the DNR” story in the near future to provide further details on this year’s cooperative research effort.