Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
BEST OF THE WEB

ELK

Having a laugh with Sweden’s famous elk

As The Local's elk related stories continue to prove popular among readers, we've scoured the web looking for a few video clips that pay tribute to the king of Sweden's forests.

Published: 2 November 2011 16:23 CET
Having a laugh with Sweden's famous elk

When moving to Sweden from another country, there are certain adjustments one needs to make.

Swedes rather disputed public manners, for starters, the Swedish language, and last but not least, scaring off an elk or two to impress the ladies.

This classic clip below is a case of the wild getting too close to civilization, or perhaps the other way around… either way, there’s something disturbing, but also rather sweet about this clip.

Clip has music embedded.

Hey what’s this? A straightforward paved road, no stumps or branches to kick my hoofs in… My new favourite cardio spot!

Warning, lots of Swedish cuss words.

Roaming around in people’s back yards might prove profitable, especially if there’s an abundance of fermenting apples lying around. Just keep your eyes open, because there might be traps out there.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

ELK

‘Stop taking selfies with elk,’ police warn Stockholmers

Stockholm police have asked the public to stop taking photos with elk, after several of the wild animals had to be killed after getting agitated by selfie-takers.

Published: 28 September 2021 09:15 CEST
'Stop taking selfies with elk,' police warn Stockholmers
Whether in nature or in the city, if you do see an elk in Sweden, always keep a distance. Photo: Lola Akinmade Åkerström/imagebank.sweden.se

Police needed to shoot the elk after they wandered into residential areas including Nacka and Enskede in the capital, Mitt i Stockholm reports.

“An elk that has got lost can usually find its way back if it is calm. But when people run up and take pictures, it becomes stressed and aggressive. It is utterly misanthropic and it’s outrageous that people do not understand better,” police officer Kenneth Kronberg, responsible for the National Game Accident Council (NVR), told the newspaper. 

“Game wardens have agreed that there is nothing wrong with the elk in the city. However, they get very stressed because there are so many people trying to take pictures. That’s why we have to kill the elk, because of 08-ers [a pejorative term for Stockholmers] who think the animal world looks like a Walt Disney movie.”

As well as avoiding taking photos with the animals, police also urged the public to avoid attempting to pet or stroke them, or getting too close. If you see a wild elk, instead you should keep a safe distance away.

In 2017, a rare while elk drew crowds of visitors hoping to catch a glimpse after a video went viral, and again police had to warn the public to treat the animal with care and avoid approaching it. The elk then grew aggressive, charging at a dog-walker, which led police to say they would need to kill the elk if they could not chase it away from the residential area.

SHOW COMMENTS