‘Zombie moose’: As climate change shortens winters, ticks ravage New Hampshire’s moose population

This story was originally produced by the New Hampshire Bulletin , an independent local newsroom that allows NHPR and other outlets to republish its reporting.

Every fall, winter ticks in New England sit on shrubs or other plants waiting for a large animal to pass by so they can latch on and begin sucking out blood. This has a huge impact on the area’s moose, wildlife biologists say.

“They basically become zombies and die,” Eric Orff, a New Hampshire-based wildlife biologist, said. “We have zombie moose.”

According to estimates from New Hampshire Fish and Game, the Granite State’s moose population peaked in the late 1990s at around 7,000 to 8,000 moose. It has since declined to roughly 3,000 to 4,000.

Most tick species move from host to host frequently, but winter ticks find a mo