A 55-year-old man is dead after striking a moose while snowmobiling in the Bas-St-Laurent region.

The man hit the wild animal at about 10:15 p.m. on a marked trail in Saint-Joseph-de-Kamouraska near Riviere-du-Loup, some 400 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

The man struck the moose at full force as passed underneath the animal, the two witnesses told police.

"This snowmobiler passed under the moose and had very strong severe injuries to his head," said Surete du Quebec Sgt. Claude Denis.

He endured severe head injuries and was transported to hospital, where his death was confirmed.

Speed was a likely factor in the incident, said police.

The moose has not been found, but tracks leaving the site of the crash indicate it was not severely injured, said Denis.

"The animal was gone. We were able to see something in the snow, but we were not able to locate this animal," he said.



The two other snowmobilers were unharmed and he snowmobile sustained very little damage.

This is the seventh snowmobiler to die in Quebec since the start of the winter season.

The Surete du Quebec is warning drivers of all types of vehicles to be cautious of wild animals, particularly in remote areas of Quebec.

"Even if you are a driver of a snowmobile, a car, or a truck, you have to be extremely careful on the road," said Denis. "There are many moose or deer in this area. You have to be very careful."