Spiky Christmas menu for the moose in Langenberg

Hundreds of Christmas trees are piled up in front of the operations building at Zurich Langenberg Wilderness Park every year after December 24 - making the end of the year a festive time for the park's large herbivores too. The six moose are particularly happy about the prickly presents. But wild horses, deer and bison also get to nibble on the pots. The unsold Christmas trees are collected from all over the region - from local nurseries and traders. Used trees cannot be fed to the animals. Tinsel and wax residues would harm the animals, and checking each individual tree would be too time-consuming.

Recycling down to the last needle

An adult moose eats up to six Christmas trees a day. The animals love nutrient-rich plant parts such as twigs, buds and needles. Moose are true foraging specialists who select their food very carefully. "In spring, summer and fall, moose eat willows. In winter, they then switch to conifers," says Urs von Riedmatten, Head of Animal Operations. "The unsold Christmas trees are a real delicacy for our animals every year." And the bare trunks and branches are processed into wood chips and end up in the heating system of the farm building.

Further information

Judith Falusi
Head of Marketing Wilderness Park Zurich
Tel. 044 722 55 26
judith.falusi@wildnispark.ch