Wolverine
- Class: Mammals (Mammalia)
- Order: Carnivores (Carnivora)
- Family: Mustelids (Mustelidae)
- Genus: Gulo
- Species: Gulo gulo
- SubGenus: G. g. gulo
Size
The wolverine is the largest living member of the mustelid family. Fully-grown adults weigh between 10 and 25 kg.
Ecology
The wolverine inhabits the taiga and tundra of the northern hemisphere. It is extremely strong and aggressive for its size, and has been reported to drive bears and even packs of wolves from their kills.
Wolverines are solitary animals, and males have very extensive home ranges and they are known to travel up to 45?km one day in pursuit of their activities. Males share their territories with 2 or 3 females, and mark stones and trees in their territories with secretions from anal scent glands.
Wolverines are active all year as snow and most other severe weather conditions seem not to affect them greatly.
Food habits
The wolverine feeds on hares, ptarmigan and reindeer, but it also consumes carrion that wolves and other carnivores leave uneaten.
Longevity
The wolverine lives for 15 years in the wild.
Reproduction
In a process that is rare among mustelids, the wolverine female undergoes a delay in the implantation of her fertilised egg. Gestation period then follows for 9 to 10 months, when finally between 2 and 4 young are born. The young remain in the den for 2 to 3 months, during which time she continues to suckle them. During spring and summer they follow the female’s activities, keeping within her territory, until late autumn when they leave their mother’s care to lead separate lives.
Conservation status
The wolverine is considered to be the most threatened of Sweden’s four large predators, the others are the bear, lynx and wolf. Numbers of the wolverine have declined due to its trapping for fur, and hunting by those believing it to be a nuisance. It remains to be hunted hunted illegally, even though full protection had been granted to the species in 1969.
IUCN Threat Category:
Endangered.
