Powell, Ohio. The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Powell, Ohio, is s non-profit zoo that houses over 10,000 different exciting animals.
Their newest resident is a moose named Strawbery, who sadly was orphaned in Alaska not long after she was born.
Strawberry is estimated to be between 4 to 6 months old right now, and over the summer, she was discovered all alone in the Alaskan wilderness.
“Found in Anchorage, Alaska on Strawberry Road (the inspiration for her name), neighborhood residents spotted the young moose calf without her mother in June 2021,” the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium said in a press release.
“The pair had previously been seen in the area, and it was unusual for the calf’s mother—who residents observed to be a beautiful, good-sized moose—to not be with her calf.”
“The Alaska Zoo’s Deputy Curator also lives on that road and saw the calf after neighbors contacted Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists with concerns that she was also trying to cross roads.”
The biologists went out to the location where Strawberry had been seen, and they spent two days watching her behavior and movements.
After realizing she did not have a mom anywhere near her, they concluded she was an orphan.
Columbus Zoo and Aquarium; pictured above is Strawberry after her arrival at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium
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They moved Strawberry to be at the Alaska Zoo so she would be taken care of, but the zoo happened to have a few orphans they were already in charge of.
Given the fact that the Alaska Zoo wasn’t able to keep Strawberry there long term, they worked to find her a forever home.
That’s where the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium came in. They were picked to have Strawberry, and she arrived in their care on October 12th.
She’s currently completing her quarantine, and then she will be meeting another orphaned moose named Bertha who also lives at the zoo.
The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium said that moose aren’t technically endangered, and they are also not considered to be threatened, but given the fact that they struggle a lot in the wild, conservationists keep a close eye on them.
You can follow the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on Facebook here to keep up with how Strawberry is doing in her new home!