Daily food intake can exceed 13 kilograms. In spite of their size and the thick cover they inhabit, moose can move with surprising stealth to escape danger. If pressed, a moose can be a dangerous adversary. Using sharp hooves, adults will fend off small packs of wolves. Around April, bulls begin to develop new antlers under a velvet-like covering that won't be shed until late August.
Spring also finds the moose undergoing a shift in preferred habitat.
The first growth of lush green plants, often found on south facing slopes that melt first, is highly relished by the moose. Young are born in late May or early June, and at birth may weigh 11 to 13 kilograms. Growth is so rapid that by autumn calves can weigh over 10 times that much. Summer diet includes grasses and aquatic plants. Moose now frequent shorelines of shallow lakes and marshes feeding morning and evening on pondweeds or water lilies.