Canada in älgkonflikt with Norway

Ten meters high towering Storelgen up out of the forest along the national road 3 between Oslo and Trondheim. The Norwegian work of art was erected in 2015 – and stole then the spotlight from the canadian Mac the Moose in over 30 years of time had stoltserat to be called the world's highest älgskulptur.

– the Mac the Mooses hometown – it was hard to swallow. Their älgskulptur has been so popular that it been appointed to the city's most popular celebrity. And now they think strike back.

" this is personal for me. Mac the Moose is practically one of the family, " says mayor Fraser Tolmie in a video on Facebook.

– Mac the Moose was the tallest elk in the world. And it has the Norwegian people taken away from us. What do you think we should do about it?

a response to a clarion call from some locals who invites Moose Jaw to increase the Mac the Mooses height by 31 centimeters – and thus reclaiming the crown.

They have started a fundraiser to raise money for the project. Stiletto heels, hats, and horn are among the more-or-less serious proposals that have been lifted as a possible way to get the moose to grow.

But so easy not thinking about Storelgens hometown Stor-Elvdal give up. When the artist Linda Bakke designed Storelgen she did it deliberately a little higher than in Canada – and now, the municipality has been in contact with her to discuss the conditions to maintain the record.

Storelgen in Norway is just over 10 metres high. Photo: Sandberg/Stor-Elvdal kommune/TT

other things started to investigate what it would cost to build one twice as high for elk in gold.

– It is perhaps not so realistic, but it is fun to be big in the jaw. At the same time, there is a pride in having the highest elk, and we intend to do what we can to retain the title, says Terje Hoffstad, mayor of Stor-Elvdal, TT.

" But we have always had a friendly tone and a twinkle in his eye. The plan is to continue to do so.

it was in order to strengthen the road user's attention and reduce the number of accidents. Little did the municipality that a moose would one day create headlines in everything from The New York Times to The Guardian and the BBC.

" We are a municipality with 2,500 inhabitants, so we are not familiar with that it is we who over one night is most visible in the international press. It is gratifying and of course amazing from a marketing perspective, " says Hoffstad.

– Now, it is not just running past the moose anymore, but many stop and take a picture.

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