Bark scratched off trees?
 

We were out at Mount Major today (Beaver Pond Trail) and noticed several trees with the bark newly scraped off, from about a 6-10 foot height. We also noticed this by the pond. Would this be bears? Or possibly deer or moose scraping their antlers?

Moose scraping their antlers.

Welcome to the forum nesun326!

I would say that from your description, ( 6-10 foot height ) that it be bears.
I wish that you had had a camera with as a picture would be helpful too.

Terry
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Bear, and be aware!
Look for unnatural disturbances. Broken twigs, beaten paths and removed bark from trees are some of the typical animal markers that you'll want to keep an eye out for. Some deer, for instance, rub their antlers on trees or rocks, while bears often scratch trees to sharpen their claws and mark territory. Look for unnatural occurrences, such as these, and you'll often find animal tracks nearby.

Yogi Bear told me once that he used to sharpen his claws not far from his den!

Make plenty of noise so as not to surprise any bear/s in proximity to you!

http://www.dailypuppy.com/articles/h...e-7b4e459e1867

Buck antler rub , White Clay Park.

6-10 ft high is to high for a deer. Did they look fresh? Could be a moose rub line from last fall or real early spring when they are dropping the antlers. It would look like scratches or will have hair in it. If it was a bear and rubbed right down to smooth wood if from antlers. Hard to tell with out a picture..... I hope this helps
This is a moose rub but they are not always this big
http://wildwoodtracking.com/mammals/...lerrub3878.jpg
This shows a bear rub and scratches
http://www.nrmsc.usgs.gov/research/N...jectPhotos.htm

That's a classic Bear...They reach way up the tree kind of in a stretch like a cat does with a scratching post. Their marking territory when they do this...

A bear scratch will have visible claw marks. A moose rub will not. Height sounds more like moose. They rub the velvet off and polish their racks just like deer. Here's a photo of one (healed) from the Sandwich Range.

http://i.pbase.com/u13/gfevans/large...161630_IMG.jpg

The removing of velvet does not occur until September, just before the rut. This is more than likely last years rub if it did not have the claw marks in the sap wood.

Moose and deer will not rub a tree in the same fashion to remove the antlers as they would to remove the velvet. The antlers will usually fall off as they walk through thick brush. The change in the bases happens naturally to shed the antlers and rarely requires help to remove them from the skull.

Ten feet is also very high even for a moose, but I assume this was a quick guess at the height and not something that was measured. Just guessing as I do not typically carry a tape measure with me when hiking, but you never know whats in others packs.