Versions of ‘wild’ and the importance of fences in Swedish wildlife tourism involving moose

Abstract

There seems to be a trend for humans to interact with free-ranging wildlife in addition to interact with animals in parks and zoos. In Sweden, there is also an opposing spatial trend. One example is the establishment of themed moose parks where visitors can interact closely with the animals. This raises questions about the role of spatial context for how encounters between moose and humans take place, which influences the meanings of ‘wild’ moose. In this article, the meaning of ‘wild’ in Swedish wildlife tourism involving moose (Alces alces, ‘elk’ in English) is explored by a performative approach to wildlife tourism in three spatial settings of zoo, moose safari and moose park. It is argued that the meaning of ‘wild’ becomes practised as ‘exotic stranger’, ‘admired acquaintance’ or ‘close personal friend’ depending on the kind of bodily encounter that takes place within the three spatial settings. These encounters give rise to opportunities to learn and to be entertained by the moose in different ways due to variation in spatial context.