Minnesota’s 2025 moose population stable, but they’re not out of the woods

Minnesota’s moose population has stabilized over the past decade but climate change, predators and parasites continue to put the creatures at risk, the latest state Department of Natural Resources survey shows.

The recently conducted 2025 survey of northeastern Minnesota estimates the population at about 4,040, up from 3,470 in 2024, the DNR said in its report posted Monday.

The estimates have stayed relatively stable after crashing between 2009 and 2013. The state’s moose population has fallen some 60 percent since the mid-2000s.

“Results continue to suggest that after a steep decline from a population estimate of approximately 8,000 in 2009, Minnesota’s moose population appears to have stabilized and has fluctuated around 3,700 animals in recent years,” the agency said Monday.

Researchers fly overhead to count moose in the winter survey and then estimate the population using a variety of factors including the number of bulls, cows and calves that were seen.

The annual survey is a partnership with the DNR, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and the 1854 Treaty Authority.