Wolverine (Gulo Gulo) Data Deficient WAYNE LYNCH

Alberta’s Photo here position over top of this box Wolverine (Gulo gulo) data deficient WAYNE LYNCH

Description Nova Scotia and southwestern Ontario, and in the northern United States, as far status The wolverine is a solitary, medium- as Illinois and Indiana in the east and sized carnivore that is also called Alberta: Recommended by New Mexico and California in the west. the Endangered Species “glutton,” “carcajou (evil one),” or “skunk Little information exists about the Conservation Committee bear.” As the largest member of the wolverine’s Eurasian distribution. In (ESCC) as Data Deficient weasel family, the wolverine can be up southern and eastern Canada, wolverine British Columbia: Sensitive to 125 cm in length, with males ranging populations are now at very low levels Saskatchewan: Sensitive from 11.3 to16.2 kg and females ranging and the species has been extirpated Manitoba: Sensitive from 6.6 to 14.8 kg in weight. The from large portions of its range. Ontario: May Be At Risk wolverine can defend its food Wolverine populations and ranges have Quebec: At Risk aggressively against wolves and bears also decreased in northern and western New Brunswick: Extirpated by using its muscular body, razor-sharp Canada, although the extent to which Labrador: At Risk teeth and strong jaws, and by covering this has occurred is unknown. Yukon: Sensitive food with foul-smelling secretions from Northwest Territories: its anal gland. The wolverine’s dense, Historically found across Alberta, the Secure chocolate-brown coat usually has two wolverine is now restricted to the Nunavut: Sensitive buff stripes that run along the flanks, northern, boreal half of the province and Canada (COSEWIC): Eastern joining at the base of a large, bushy tail. along the mountains and foothills. population is Alberta’s wolverine population is wide- The wolverine is a scavenger as well as a Endangered; western ranging (with a range of approximately and northern cunning predator. During the summer, 400 000 km2), but has a low density. The populations are the wolverine preys mainly on marmots, species’ reliance on carrion limits the Vulnerable (1989) ground squirrels, mice, voles, birds and number of individuals supported by an United States: Apparently insects, but also consumes eggs and Secure (N4) area, making for an extremely dispersed berries. During the winter, it is primarily population. a scavenger, relying heavily on carrion of large ungulates killed by starvation, The Alberta population is considered to disease or other predators. If snow be declining at an unknown rate conditions are favourable or if the prey because the range and distribution of is weakened, wolverines will harvest have decreased significantly occasionally kill deer, moose and since trapping records have been kept, caribou during winter. independent of harvest effort and fur price. The current provincial wolverine population is roughly estimated at Population and Distribution fewer than 1000 breeding individuals. The circumboreal distribution of the wolverine has dwindled significantly since the early 1900s, especially in the Habitat eastern and southern portions of its Despite its shrinking range, the range. The wolverine was once found wolverine is still found in a diversity of across Canada, except in Newfoundland, ecozones, including the boreal forest, data deficient Wolverine (Gulo gulo)

tundra and subalpine regions. This species necessary. Alberta has initiated population tends to be found in fairly remote habitats trend and inventory protocols for the not associated with human development, and wolverine. After these protocols are sometimes avoids large open areas such as completed, management activities other than recent cutblocks. Generally, wolverine harvest regulations will be evaluated. density and use of habitats is influenced more Alberta’s Endangered Species Conservation strongly by food availability (especially Committee assessed the wolverine in ungulate carrion during the winter) than by September 2000, recommending that specific habitat characteristics. trapping should be allowed to continue for now to facilitate data collection, but that Threats provincial trapping regulations should be reviewed after two years. Other Human encroachment and the resulting recommendations include involving trappers habitat alteration have reduced the in research, investigating models that project wolverine’s range. Human settlement, future changes in wolverine habitat, and extensive logging, oil and gas development, incorporating consideration of the wolverine mining and recreational development all in land use guidelines and environmental render the habitat less suitable for impact assessments. wolverines and increase mortality. Other threats to Alberta’s wolverine population include activities reducing the What You Can Do To Help amount of ungulate carrion available during As a member of the public, a landowner, an the winter, predator- and rabies-control industrial developer or a trapper: programs, and trapping and hunting pressures. The wolverine has a low population density and, as is true for most large · Report observations of the wolverine to the carnivores, its reproductive potential is nearest office of the Fish and Wildlife Division, naturally low. As a result, the trapping of only Alberta Sustainable Resource Development. a few individuals has a large potential to · Contact the Fish and Wildlife Division for negatively affect the reproductive success of information on ways to modify activities to the population, and recovery from any minimize negative effects on the wolverine, and population decline will be slow. how you can help with research (e.g., allowing Fish and Wildlife biologists to conduct autopsies on trapped animals) and recovery. Management The wolverine is protected as a “fur-bearing animal” under Alberta’s Wildlife Act, and the circumstances under which it can be harvested or controlled are specified. The limited amount of information available on Alberta’s wolverine populations makes it difficult to assess the species’ provincial status and to determine the impact of potential threats on local populations. To accurately define its status in Alberta, additional research of demography, distribution and ecology is

May 2003 For more information on Alberta’s Species At Risk: http://www3.gov.ab.ca/srd/fw/riskspecies/