As conservationists in Beringia — an (at least historically) icy patch of land and sea that straddles the United States, Canada and Russia, hugging the Bering and Chukchi seas — we have spent a fair share of time considering this elusive carnivore, the wolverine ( Gulo gulo ).
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Wolverine skull from the Pleistocene of Germany at the Berlin's Natural History Museum Genetic evidence suggests that the wolverine is most closely related to the tayra and martens, all of which shared a Eurasian ancestor. Within the Gulo gulo species, a clear separation occurs between two subspecies: the Old World form Gulo gulo gulo and the New World form G. g. luscus. Some authors had described as many as four additional North American subspecies, including ones limited to Vancouver Island (G. g. vancouverensis) and the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska (G. g. katschemakensis).
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Pulliainen, E. (1968). Breeding biology of the wolverine (Gulo gulo L.) in Finland. In Annales Zoologici Fennici (Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 338–344).
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An Old World wolverine (gulo gulo gulo) in a zoo in Norway The pendant is made from a shaped bone, about 1.5 mm thick. There is a hole at one end to enable it to be worn on a string as a pendant or part of a necklace. It may also have been suspended on other things, such as posts. Both sides are smooth.
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Brehms Het Leven der Dieren Zoogdieren Orde 4 Veelvraat (Gulo borealis).jpg Wolverine display at Arctic Interagency Visitor Center at Coldfoot.jpg Gulo gulo 01.jpg Wolverin pup in Sweden.
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They are the marsh rice rat (Oryzomys palustris), gray wolf (Canis lupus), marten (Martes americana), wolverine (Gulo gulo), cougar (Felis concolor), Canada lynx (Lynx canadenis), moose (Alces alces) and bison (Bison bison).
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One outsized specimen was reported to scale approximately .Holbrow, W. C. (1976). The biology, mythology, distribution, and management of the wolverine (Gulo gulo) in western Canada. The University of Manitoba (Masters Thesis).Krott, P. (1959).
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The average weight of male and female wolverines from Norway was listed as and .Wiig, Ø. (1989). Craniometric variation in Norwegian wolverines Gulo gulo L. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 95(3), 177–204. Shoulder height is reported from .
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Robitaille, J. F., Villano, L., Jung, T. S., Slama, H. P., & Oakley, M. P. (2012). Fat dynamics and development of body condition indices for harvested populations of wolverine Gulo gulo. Wildlife biology, 18(1), 35–45. In Finland, the average weight was claimed as .
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The cost of a prickly diet: incidents of porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) quills embedded in Wolverine (Gulo gulo). The Canadian Field-Naturalist, 129(3), 273-276., coyotes, wolvesWobeser, G. (1992). Traumatic, degenerative, and developmental lesions in wolves and coyotes from Saskatchewan. Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 28(2), 268-275.
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Plesiogulo is a genus of prehistoric carnivore that lived from Miocene to Pliocene of Africa, Eurasia and North America. An ancestral relationship to the wolverine (Gulo gulo) was once suggested, but it is no longer considered likely. However, some authorities still consider it a member of the Guloninae.
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Whether eating live prey or carrion, the wolverine's feeding style appears voracious, leading to the nickname of "glutton" (also the basis of the scientific name). However, this feeding style is believed to be an adaptation to food scarcity, especially in winter.Wolverine Gulo gulo , eNature.com The wolverine is also a powerful and versatile predator.
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Mammals include elk (Cervus canadensis), mule deer (Odocoileus hemonius), black bear (Ursus americanus), wolverine (Gulo gulo), North American cougar (Puma concolor), Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), and American marten (Martes americana). Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horriblis) may exist in this region but there has not been a confirmed sighting of a grizzly in Colorado since 1979.
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Wolverine, Gulo gulo, home range size and denning habitat in lowland boreal forest in Ontario. The Canadian Field-Naturalist, 124(2), 139–144. The average weights of wolverines were notably lower in a study from the Yukon, averaging in females and in males, perhaps because these animals from a "harvest population" had low fat deposits.
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Another significant cause of egg and nestling mortality is predation. These have been verified to be preyed by large gulls, corvids (including ravens, crows and magpies), wolverines (Gulo gulo), fishers (Martes pennanti), red-tailed hawks, owls, eagles, bobcats (Lynx rufus), American black bears (Ursus americanus) and raccoons.Lovallo, M. J. (2008). Status and management of fisher (Martes pennanti) in Pennsylvania.
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The wolverine () (also spelled wolverene), Gulo gulo (Gulo is Latin for "glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, skunk bear, or quickhatch (from East Cree, kwiihkwahaacheew), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a stocky and muscular carnivore, more closely resembling a small bear than other mustelids. A solitary animal, it has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size, with the documented ability to kill prey many times larger than itself. The wolverine is found primarily in remote reaches of the Northern boreal forests and subarctic and alpine tundra of the Northern Hemisphere, with the greatest numbers in Northern Canada, the U.S. state of Alaska, the mainland Nordic countries of Europe, and throughout western Russia and Siberia.
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Predators of trumpeter swan eggs include common ravens (Corvus corax), common raccoons (Procyon lotor), wolverines (Gulo gulo), American black bears (Ursus americanus), grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horriblis), coyote (Canis latrans), wolves (Canis lupus), mountain lions (Puma concolor), and northern river otters (Lontra canadensis).Lockman, D. C., Wood, R., Burgess, H., & Smith, H. (1982). Rocky Mountain Trumpeter Swan population. Wyoming flock, 1986.
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The main vegetation forms within the reserve are Taiga forest and coniferous forest including Pinus pumila elfin and Pinus sylvestris. Hanma has a highly abundant biological diversity. Typical species include the Siberian salamander (Salamandrella keyserlingii), wolverine (Gulo gulo), moose (Alces alces cameloides), Siberian musk deer (Moschus moschiferus), sable (Martes zibellina), great grey owl (Strix nebulosa) and other near arctic animals.
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Predation by Wolves, Canis lupus, on Wolverines, Gulo gulo, and an American Marten, Martes americana, in Alaska. Canadian Field- Naturalist, 116(1), 132–134. In North America, another predator (less frequent) is the cougar. At least one account reported a wolverine's apparent attempt to steal a kill from a black bear, although the bear won what was ultimately a fatal contest for the wolverine.
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Mammals of the North Central Rockies forests include the gray wolf (Canis lupus), grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horriblus), wolverine (Gulo gulo), woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), black bear (Ursus americanus cinnamomum), mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus), mule deer (Odocoileus hemonius), white- tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), Rocky Mountain elk ( Cervus canadensis nelson), moose (Alces alces), coyote (Canis latrans), cougar (Puma concolor), bobcat (Lynx rufus), fisher (Martes pennanti), and American marten (Martes americana).
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Wildlife includes several species of interest. There are six animal species on the reserve that benefit from protection status: wolverine (Gulo gulo), boreal woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), rock vole (Microtus chrotorrhinus) and least weasel (Mustela nivalis). Three other species are also considered of "heritage interest", the willow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus), osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and rough-legged buzzard (Buteo lagopus).
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The wild boar (Sus scrofa) is found in the lower foothills and surrounding lowlands. Until recently, the Mongolian gazelle (Procapra gutturosa) was found in the Russian Altai mountains, more specifically in the Chuya River steppe close to the Mongolian border. Large predators are represented by snow leopards (Panthera uncia, syn. Uncia uncia), wolves (Canis lupus), lynx (Lynx lynx), and brown bears (Ursus arctos), in the northern parts also by the wolverine (Gulo gulo).
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It has the widest distribution of any terrestrial carnivore, and is adapted to a wide range of habitats, including areas of intense human development. Like the wolf, it is distributed throughout the majority of the Holarctic, but it has avoided extirpation. The wolverine (Gulo gulo) is a large member of the weasel family found primarily in the arctic and in boreal forests, ranging south in mountainous regions. It is distributed in such areas throughout Eurasia and North America.
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Although locally dependent on the hares as their main food, northern goshawks (Accipiter gentilis), red-tailed hawks and golden eagles apparently do not have as large of an impact on the hares, nor do mammalian carnivore generalists that also kill many hares, like the fisher, bobcat, wolverine (Gulo gulo), coyote and larger varieties (i.e. wolves (Canis lupus), cougars (Puma concolor) and bears (Ursus ssp.)).WLM. (1918). Bird Enemies of the Varying Hare. The Auk, 372-373.
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Tracking enables the detection of rare, endangered, and elusive species. The science of tracking is utilized in the study of forest carnivores like the Canada Lynx (Felis lynx) and the Wolverine (Gulo gulo). Various measurements of tracks, and/or an animal's paws, and subsequent analyses of the datum, can also reveal important information about animals' physiology and their behavior. For example, measurements of lynx paws demonstrate their support capacity (on snow) to be double that of bobcat.
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Elk and bison have been introduced. There are many species of rodents, including squirrels, ground squirrels, lemmings, pikas, beavers, various voles, porcupines, muskrats, etc. Mustelids are also well represented and include the wolverine (Gulo gulo), marten (Martes americana), ermine (Mustela erminea), least weasel (Mustela nivalis), American mink (Mustela vison), and the river otter (Lontra canadensis). Other small carnivores present are the lynx (Lynx canadensis), red fox ( Vulpes vulpes) and Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) along the northern coast.
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Black wolves were also reported in Siberia as the Vekvoturian Mountain-wolf. Colonel Smith erroneously believed that the so-called "Rossomak" of the Lenas in Siberia was of the same variety. However, in fact, "Rossomak" in Russian exactly corresponds with the English "wolverine", a mustelid species, in English (Gulo gulo in Latin). Black wolves were considered rare in northern Europe, however, Dr Höggberg, a medical practitioner at Karlstad mentioned five black wolves being killed in the Swedish province of Värmland in 1801.
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Finally, the wolverine (Gulo gulo, classified as endangered in Sweden) is well established in the reserve. Although it is typically a forest animal, it is no longer present in the forests of Sweden except for near the mountains and Vindelfjällen is no exception. This is likely due to large population around Ammarfjället. Other predators include the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), which, as in most Swedish mountains, is expanding rapidly and competing with the arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) even in the tundra.p.
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McArthur Lake Wildlife Corridor is in a scenic area of Idaho. It contains conifer forests, forested or shrub wetlands and swamps, streams and rivers. The high-quality cold water streams are home to the only populations of interior redband trout known in Idaho, and are key to recovery of the threatened bull trout. Animals that migrate through the corridor include American black bear (Ursus americanus), Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), elk (Cervus canadensis), gray wolf (Canis lupus), grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis), moose (Alces americanus), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and wolverine (Gulo gulo).
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The survey results were published in Animal Life of the Yosemite with an entry on wolverine (Gulo gulo): "the wolverine is a rare animal anywhere in the Sierra Nevada. Its inclusion here is based upon the capture of two individuals at the head of Lyell Canyon." The last confirmed California wolverine was killed seven years later by local trapper and miner Albert J. Gardisky in Mono County near Saddlebag Lake on February 22, 1922. This complete specimen is located in the mammal collection at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology.
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Prey items and predation behavior of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Nunavut, Canada based on Inuit hunter interviews. Aquatic biosystems, 8(1), 3. The remains of polar bears have found in the stomachs of large Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus), although it certainly cannot be ruled out that the bears were merely scavenged by this slow-moving, unusual shark. A rather unlikely killer of a grown polar bear has reportedly included a wolverine (Gulo gulo), anecedotely reported to have suffocated a bear in a zoo with a bite to the throat during a conflict.
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A total of 80 species of mammals have been observed in Finland. The Saimaa ringed seal Pusa hispida saimensis is an endemic subspecies restricted to Lake Saimaa. In 2015 assessment of endangered Finnish bird and mammal species, mammal species classified as threatened included the Natterer's bat Myotis nattereri (endangered), the Nathusius’ pipistrelle Pipistrellus nathusi (Vulnerable), the arctic fox Vulpes lagopus (Critically endangered), the Gray wolf Canis lupus (endangered), the wolverine Gulo gulo (endangered), the European polecat Mustela putorius (Vulnerable) and the Saimaa ringed seal Pusa hispida saimensis (endangered).
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Ambio, 281–286. When unusually breeding south in the Subarctic such as western Alaska, Scandinavia and central Russia, the number of predators with which the snowy owls are obligated to share prey and compete with may be too numerous to name. The taking of the young and eggs of snowy owls has been committed by a large number of predators: hawks and eagles, the northern jaegers, peregrine and gyrfalcons, glaucous gulls, common ravens, Arctic wolves (Canis lupus arctos), polar bears, brown bears (Ursus arctos), wolverines (Gulo gulo) and perhaps especially the Arctic fox.Ovsyanikov, N.G. & Menushina, I.E. (1986).
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Cats in comparison to dogs and bears have much longer and stronger frontlimbs armed with retractable claws to hold on to prey. Hyenas are dog-like feliforms that have sloping backs due to their front legs being longer than their hindlegs. The raccoon family as well as the red panda are small, bear-like carnivorans with long tails. The other small carnivoran families Nandiniidae, Prionodontidae, Viverridae, Herpestidae, Eupleridae, Mephitidae and Mustelidae have through convergent evolution maintained the small, ancestral appearance of the miacoids, though there is some variation seen such as the robust and stout physicality of badgers and the wolverine (Gulo gulo).
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Known predators of New England cottontails include weasels (Mustela), domestic cats (Felis catus), true foxes (Vulpes), birds of prey (Falconiformes), coyotes (Canis latrans), and bobcats (Lynx rufus). Past predators may have included gray wolves (Canis lupus), eastern cougars (Puma concolor), wolverines (Gulo gulo), and Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis). To avoid predators, the New England cottontails run for cover; "freeze" and rely on their cryptic coloration; or, when running, follow a zig- zag pattern to confuse the predator. Because New England cottontail habitat is small and has less vegetative cover, they must forage more often in the open, leaving them vulnerable.
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The chances of survival increase incrementally both when they reach the fledging stage and when they can start hunting for themselves. Death of flying immatures and adults are often the result of human activity, including collisions with power lines, buildings and vehicles, incidental ingestion of poison or lead from prey or illegal hunting and trapping. Most predation recorded on this species is on the young at the nest. Arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus), brown bears (Ursus arctos) and wolverines (Gulo gulo) have all eaten eggs and young of this species if they are capable of accessing nests on foot.
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On the contrary, wolverines (Gulo gulo) are known to have been persistent enough to fend off a grizzly bear as much as 10 times their weight from a kill. In some rare cases, wolverines have lost their lives to grizzly bears and wolverines in Denali National Park will reportedly try to avoid encounters with grizzlies. Beyond wolves, other canids may occasionally be killed around their den, most likely pups or kits, or adults if overly incautious near a carrion site, including coyotes (Canis latrans), multiple species of foxes and raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides).Sillero-Zubiri, C., Hoffmann, M., & Macdonald, D. W. (Eds.). (2004).
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There are few natural predators of adult cranes, although white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), Bonelli's eagles (Aquila fasciata) and golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) are a potential predatory threat to common cranes of all ages. The crane has been known to counterattack eagles both on the land and in mid-flight, using their bill as a weapon and kicking with their feet. Common cranes were additionally recorded as prey for Eurasian eagle-owls (Bubo bubo) in the Ukok Plateau of Russia. Mammals such as wild boar (Sus scrofa), wolverine (Gulo gulo) and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are attacked at the nest, as they are potential predators.
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Its surface is formed by hills ranging between 400 m and 600 m, separated by rectilinear valleys and surrounded by the Groulx Mountains massif, which is characterized by about 30 mountains over 1000 m in height. The salt marshes of the Manicouagan – Uapishka reserve are among the most productive habitats on the planet, acting as important resting places for more than 200 migratory birds. Fauna characteristic of boreal forests in the area include the vulnerable boreal woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou), cougar (Puma concolor), least weasel (Mustela nivalis), short-eared owl (Asio flammeus), golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), and the threatened wolverine (Gulo gulo) and beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas).
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The ecoregion is home to wildlife including caribou, moose (Alces alces), American black bear (Ursus americanus), grey wolf (Canis lupus), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus), wolverine (Gulo gulo), snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) and colonies of seals. Of particular interest are the inland (and therefore freshwater) harbor seals of Lacs des Loups Marins and the world's largest herd of caribou, the George River herd of up to 400,000 animals. Birds include grouse, osprey (Pandion haliaetus), raven (Corvus corax) and many waterbirds. In particular the rocky coast is home to breeding colonies of seabirds, including the endangered eastern population of the harlequin duck and is also on the Atlantic Flyway migratory route for birds.
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Mammals which endure the harsh environment in the far north Taiga shield, Boreal Shield and Boreal Plain ecozones are American black bear (Ursus americanus), barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus), western moose (Alces alces anderson), hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus), wolverine (Gulo gulo), American marten (Martes americana), timber wolf (Canis lupus occidentalis), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), mink (Neovison vison), snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus), and red-backed vole (Myodes). The Athabasca Plain ecoregion supplies lichen as winter forage for the woodland caribou. The Arctic fox as their predator is also found in this region. As well as the mammals of the Taiga Shield ecozone, little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus), Canadian lynx (Lynx canadensis), timber wolf, Canadian beaver (Castor canadensis), muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) are found in the Boreal Shield ecozone The beavers dam small streams throughout Saskatchewan.
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Kamchatka is famous for the abundance and size of its brown bears. In the Kronotsky Nature Reserve, there are estimated to be three to four bears per 100 square kilometres. Other fauna of note include carnivores such as tundra wolf (Canis lupus albus), Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) Anadyr fox (Vulpes vulpes beringiana), East Siberian lynx (Lynx lynx wrangeli), wolverine (Gulo gulo), sable (Martes zibellina), Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), East Siberian stoat (Mustela ermine kaneii) and Siberian least weasel (Mustela nivalis pygmaea). The peninsula hosts habitat for several large ungulates including the Kamchatka snow sheep, reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), and Chukotka moose (Alces alces buturlini) one of the largest moose in the world and the largest in Eurasia; and rodents/leporids, including mountain hare (Lepus timidus), marmot, and several species of lemming and squirrel.
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