Congrats to Jane Kane for winning our Canadian critter contest! Kane, a Canadian who currently calls Australia home, insists that the almighty Canadian moose “brings her peace, joy and laughter.” We couldn’t agree more. Many thanks, as always, to those who took time to comment!

Moose? Beaver? Muskox? What wild creature – would you argue – is Canada’s most iconic? Make the case for your favourite Canadian critter here and you could win a trilogy of books for young readers—The Sea Wolves, The Salmon Bears and The Great Bear Sea. The series is written by author Nicholas Read and photographed by one of our favourite Canadian conservation photographers Ian McAllister, the same guy who we featured in our Eyes of the The Great Bear post. Standing by! (Contest ends July 15 at midnight).

Near Canmore, Alberta / Photo by Toque & Canoe

Near Canmore, Alberta / Photo by Toque & Canoe

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  1. Kevin commented:

    The MOOSE! What we used to call back in Cape Breton, NS as the “Rubber Nosed Swamp Donkey”… the moose holds a special place in my Canuck heart! It’s big, it’s dramatic, it’s even dangerous at times! The Beaver may be our national animal, but the Moose…tis da King…Queen depending on the gender! 😉

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  2. Don Enright commented:

    I’m going to throw you a curve ball here: the red squirrel. There is no sound more quintessentially Canadian than that of a red squirrel scolding you from a pine tree. It is the sound of summer, of camping, of children gingerly holding out a peanut in hopes that the wily squirrel might come close. They’re cute, they’re small, they’re unassuming… but under that fuzzy surface they are 100% badass. Red squirrels fear nothing. Other rodents scurry about under cover of darkness; red squirrels are all up in your face in broad daylight. Other critters hibernate the Canadian winter away; red squirrels tough it out through the coldest days of January. Red squirrels are everything Canadian wrapped up in one little bundle of awesomeness.

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  3. Fred John Price commented:

    ~The Majestic Moose ~…there’s nothing like the sound of the Cow Moose calling her mate in the cool fresh fall time air & have the Big Bull Moose come grunting to his every step to make his way to her beaconing call.

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  4. Sandra Phinney commented:

    Perhaps not iconic in the sense of being familiar/famous across the country, but the wily raccoon is quite a character. And that bandit face! I mean, who wouldn’t fall in love with that innocent visage at first sight? Mind you, the sight of a raccoon ransacking a bird’s nest or compost bin can send a person into a frenzy (and the closest live trap) but by gum, they are soooo darn cute! I named our last visitors Bandit, Bejeezuz and Boo.

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  5. Jane Kane commented:

    Being Canadian yet living in Australia, it seems only natural that I cling to things connected to my home land. The creature that brings me peace, joy and laughter is the Moose!
    The many faces of the Moose, the way they saunter.. are they stoned from all that pond scum?
    I’ve been told you must not get close to a Moose as they can be dangerous, how can this be? I’ve seen them play ball, take a dip in pools and have stare offs with dogs (only on YouTube sadly)..Nothing intimidating there!
    I say the Moose is the best critter on the globe, quietly reigning supreme!

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