Moose f/d weight chart

[grinr]

Ugashik Bob,I was able to get a photocopy of the chart used to determine f/d weights.There are color pics of moose in the background so it won't scan very well as my copy is blah so I'll have to enter the #s manually.

Head length is measured from the bump on skull between the antler bases to the upper edge of the leathery patch on nose.

Estimated F/D Weights Using Head Length For New Brunswick Moose

Male Moose
Head length(cm) f/d weight(lbs) Head length f/d weight
48-- 284 66-- 764
49-- 310 67-- 790
50-- 337 68-- 817
51-- 364 69-- 844
52-- 390 70-- 870
53-- 417 71-- 897
54-- 444 72-- 924
55-- 470 73-- 950
56-- 497 74-- 977
57-- 524 75-- 1004
58-- 550 76-- 1030
59-- 577 77-- 1057
60-- 604 78-- 1084
61-- 630 79-- 1110
62-- 657 80-- 1137
63-- 684 81-- 1164
64-- 710 82-- 1190
65-- 737 83-- 1217

Female

42-- 247 59-- 527
43-- 264 60-- 544
44-- 280 61-- 560
45-- 296 62-- 577
46-- 313 63-- 593
47-- 329 64-- 609
48-- 346 65-- 626
49-- 362 66-- 642
50-- 379 67-- 659
51-- 395 68-- 675
52-- 412 69-- 692
53-- 428 70-- 708
54-- 445 71-- 725
55-- 461 72-- 741
56-- 478 73-- 758
57-- 494 74-- 774
58-- 511 75-- 791

Estimated dressed weights includes head,legs and hide.

These numbers have been compiled from data over several years and several thousand samples of harvested and road killed moose.A Ranger told me the chart is considered accurate to within 15lbs give or take?Again,these are Eastern Canada moose,so I don't know how they would compare with larger AK/YK moose?

 

[UgashikBob]

Intersting data. I assume F/D means Field Dressed and that is guts only removed. Do the people that compile this data have some sort of portable tripod type scale they can transport to a kill site? I just can't fathom even a F/Dressed moose being transported anywhere in one piece without heavy equipment.
When you measure from the hump between the horns is it the front, back or middle of the hump? Any guess as to what % to add to F/D to get live on the hoof weight? It would be nice to have a data base like there's to draw from but I'm not aware of any up here but will check.
Interesting they use the skull to determine weight and feel there is not enough variation to be an issue. I know on brown bear the skull is used because the stretch the hide thing was subject to "misinterpetation". I have seen some very large bodied bears (10' plus) that were some of the oldest aged by F&G but were no where near record book because they had small heads.
I measured from the center of the hump to the tip of the bone on the skull as shown in the attached photo and it was 59cm. Don't know what to add as all the meat including the nose was boiled off. According to the chart the F/D weight was 577 but I'm sure we had more processed meat than that. The bull in question was not a really huge bodied bull but was slightly above average in body size.

 

[grinr]

Bob,yes f/d is guts only removed.The data is collected at selected registration stations throughout the province,I beleive around 10% of the regi stations are designated as "biological research stations" or something along those lines?...........DAMMIT!!Got carried away here in cyber-space and burnt my lunch! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gifOh,well,gonna be a KD lunch now I guess?.....
Where was I..oh yeah,yes they have tripods/gallows at these stations.Many moose here are brought out of the woods in one peice with the help of 4x4 ATVs,skidders,farm tractors or whatever.In fact,by law we must present the entire carcass including head and hide for registration for all big game(bear,moose,deer).They can be halved,quartered or whatever,but not boned out.That practise is reserved(not that I would know anything about that /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif) for poachers only.

59 cm?WOW!There must be alot of meat/hide etc removed,as obviously 577 isn't even close for your moose.Either that or your moose out there have much shorter snouts than ours? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused1.gifI guess it would be reasonable to add 15cm(6") for the boiled off parts,which would put it at a more realistic 970-1000lb range?As for live weight,i'm not aware of a formula for calculating that,but would have to guess at least 150 lbs of blood and guts for a mature animal?Water/blood weighs 2.2lbs/lt,we humans have what? 6-7 lts of blood?So a moose must have 20 or so?That's 40-50 lbs of blood alone!I know with deer we usually add 25% of f/d weight to guess the live weight,ie;200 lb f/d buck would be about 250 on the hoof?
As for the skull measurement,I watched the Game Warden measure ours this year and he starts at the top of that bump,dead center between the antler bases and measures to the top of the leathery patch on snout.

 

[UgashikBob]

grinr:
I sent a email to our local F&G biologist with your data and asked what we had. He said he not aware of any weight data for Moose other than calf. He said he had been peronally invloved in weighing moose in the field but they had never done anything but calves becasue the chopper they used was limited to 1000 lbs of lift.
Although we have areas of the state with road systems it is unusual to see moose brought out in pieces larger than a quarter. I saw one shot in the village downstream from us in a guys back yard that was lifted up by a front end loader and butchered on the spot. Not your every day occurrence

 

[Arcticfox]

We have a rule of thumb that says the weight of a gutted and skinned moose carcass, head and lower parts of the legs cut off, is 55 % of the live weight. It seems to hold surprisingly true everytime you test it. Don't know if it is of any help to you.