WildFact
›
Information Section
›
Terrestrial Wild Animals
›
Carnivorous and Omnivores Animals, Excluding Felids
Wolverine (Gulo gulo)
Wolverine (Gulo gulo)
|
Wolverine (Gulo gulo)
|
Wolverine kill wolf
 *This image is copyright of its original author (Picture not from the event, Red fox killed in Norway) An Indian named Larzie, who was engaged to hunt meat for the priests at Fort Resolution, once came upon a wolverine in one of his traps that had done that very thing and won the battle, too. The snow, the trap, and the carcass of a wolf, silently told Larzie every detail of the fight. The wolverine, having been caught by the left hind leg, had attempted by many means to escape, even trying to remove the nuts from the steel trap with its teeth, as well as trying to break the steel chain, and gnaw in two the wooden clog to which the trap was fastened. But before accomplishing this, the wolverine had spied a pack of five wolves approaching. In an effort to save its life the wolverine worked itself down low in the snow and there lay, feigning death. The cautious wolves, on sighting the wolverine, began circling about, each time drawing a little nearer. Still suspicious, they sat down to watch the wolverine for a while. Then they circled again, sat down once more, and perhaps did a little howling, too. Then they circled again, each time coming closer, until at last, feeling quite sure the wolverine was dead, one of the wolves, in a careless way, ventured too near. No doubt it was then that the wolverine, peeping through his almost closed eyelids, had seen his chance--that the nearest wolf was now not only within reach, but off guard, too--for the snow gave evidence of a sudden spring. The wolverine had landed upon the back of the wolf, clung on with his powerful forelegs, and not only ripped away at the wolf's belly with the long, sharp claws of his free hind foot, but with his terrible jaws had seized the wolf by the neck and chewed away at the spinal cord. Then, no doubt, the other wolves, seeing their comrade overpowered and done to death, had turned away and left the scene of battle. Later, Larzie had arrived, and after killing the wolverine and skinning both the conqueror and the conquered, had lighted his pipe and leisurely read every detail of the story in that morning's issue of the forest publication called The Snow  
Wolverines: The Future of Search and Rescue
 *This image is copyright of its original author the wolverine has a reputation. “He is one of the most powerful, thievish, daring, and efficient killing machines known to man,” writes Mark Allardyce in Wolverine: A Look into the Devil’s Eyes. The creature’s English name derives from the word wolver, or “wolf-like.” Its scientific label, Gulo gulo, comes from the Latin for “glutton.” It has been known to eat its victims—which include everything from deer and sheep to full-grown caribou—bones, teeth, and all. The animal has been called the hyena of the north. When you type “Can a wolverine” into Google, the search engine offers “kill a polar bear?” It’s no surprise, then, that Mike Miller’s proposal to train wolverines to search for—and help rescue—avalanche survivors has raised some eyebrows around his corner of Alaska, near Anchorage. “New ideas normally do sound ridiculous,” Miller says from his office at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, about an hour south of Anchorage in a valley popular with backcountry adventurers. The organization, which Miller founded two decades ago, houses hundreds of displaced or orphaned animals and has worked on big projects like reintroducing the Wood Bison to the Alaskan wilderness and repatriating condors from the San Diego Zoo. But what’s got Miller excited these days is training and breeding Kayla and Kasper, the two wolverines he’s recently acquired. “Anything you can train a dog to do, you can train a wolverine to do, five times quicker,” Miller says. Miller is fully aware that his plan sounds a little ridiculous. When I emailed him to ask about his idea, he felt compelled to defend it preemptively. “One hundred years ago, people who suggested using dogs for avalanche victim search were thought to be crazy,” he wrote. “I hope your readers understand that we are professional and serious.” On the phone, Miller’s pitch is compelling. Right now, avalanche search and rescue or recovery is carried out by dogs—usually shepherds or retrievers—who walk the avalanche site with trainers, hectare by hectare, hunting for the scent of buried humans. Wolverines, Miller says, were born to do this; smelling a creature 20 feet below the snow is instinctive for them. They’re known to run along avalanche lines searching for dinner among the animals buried deep in the slide. The squat, bear-like member of the weasel family is famed for powering up difficult terrain that would require professional climbing equipment for humans. Despite the animal’s ferocious distinction, training a wolverine is not as outlandish as it may sound. There is a small fraternity of individuals who have successfully raised wolverines in captivity. Steve Kroschel, a prolific wildlife filmmaker, runs the Kroschel Wildlife Center in Haines, Alaska. He’s been raising wolverines for 35 years. He has home videos of playing with the animals: they jump on his back; they somersault through the snow; they chase Kroschel around like golden retrievers. “They’re very, very playful, and they have a great sense of humor,” Kroschel says. “They’re loyal. Once they know you well, it sticks—they’re kind to you.” If anyone has been working to rehabilitate the wolverine’s image, it’s Kroschel. In 1991, he took a couple down to Burbank for a taping of "The Tonight Show," much to Johnny Carson’s discomfort on screen. “The wolverines did just fine,” Kroschel says. Then he brought out wolverine cubs on "The Today Show" with Katie Couric, and PBS and National Geographic came calling, asking to feature his wolverines in documentaries on the animal. “It’s a media revelation,” he says. Kroschel has Miller’s female wolverine, Kayla, at his center right now to hopefully breed with one his trained males. (It is notoriously difficult to convince wolverines to breed in captivity, Kroschel and others say.) He’s working closely with Chandelle Cotter, the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center’s animal behaviorist and training advisor. Cotter, who has experience training everything from black bears to giraffes, says the experience has been eye opening. “When Mike first approached me with the idea I kind of giggled,” Cotter says. “But I thought about it more—and why not? There are species being used across the board for different things,” from training rats to hunt for landmines in Cambodia to teaching dogs to sniff for cancer. Cotter says that only the wolverines born in captivity and raised with humans are up for the task of search and rescue. She says that with a program based on operant conditioning—i.e., positive reinforcement in the form of snacks for good behavior—they could be up and running in a few years’ time. “I have so much admiration and respect for the people who do search and recovery,” she says. “All we want to do, if this is a possibility, is give them another tool.” Kroschel is confident, too. A few years ago, he simulated a wolverine avalanche rescue for a special on the National Geographic channel. He buried the show’s host in a few feet of snow, then sent his wolverine after the “victim.” Without any prior training, Jasper, the wolverine, dug the host out. (His natural instinct to dig up carcasses and his predilection toward humans, instilled from the hours Kroschel spent bottle-feeding him as a kit, both apparently kicked in.) “To train a wolverine to find a victim in an avalanche is not a big a stretch at all, Kroschel says. “Train them a couple times with a scent from a coat or somebody and they’ll dig it up. They’re excellent diggers—no dog can dig as fast as wolverine. And they’re easily leash-trained. Put them in the helicopter, they’ll fly right out [to the avalanche site.]” (Kroschel says his wolverines love helicopter flights.) Miller and Cotter say their wolverines won’t do any digging—they’ll just be employed for their powerful olfactory system and ability to navigate harsh terrain. The center has been in close contact with the state Fish and Game department and employees there are “looking on in with interest.” (The department is already well aware that the wolverine has a bad wrap and, Miller says, is staffed with a few wolverine enthusiasts.) But not everyone is on board with the idea. “Given the fear the public has of wolverines and the belief they are more aggressive than bears, I’m not sure this idea will be well-received by the public,” Alaska State Troopers spokesperson Tim DeSpain told Alaska Dispatch News. Miller concedes that getting the public behind the idea won’t be a cakewalk. “They only think it’s impossible because of the reputation wolverines have,” he says. In the future, it seems, the most difficult part of his plan may not be training the wolverines, but instead convincing humans to reevaluate Alaska’s cuddliest “killing machine.” LINK 
http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150421-...wolverines
Wolverines are ferocious killing machines, yes, but there’s also some evidence that their hissy fits are just for show - a demonic display performed not as a precursor to a good lashing, but simply to scare away the threat, be it a bigger predator or a human. In short the wolverine often bluffs, exaggerating its fearsomeness. It turns out wolverines have a history of having to watch their back. “Their life history is one of a scavenging carnivore, which means they feed on carcasses that are out there on the landscape,” says Fisher, adding that wolverines aren’t the only ones wanting a piece of the decaying action. Wolves, black bears, grizzly bears, raptors and cougars also like to saddle up to any rotting meat buffet. Weighing 20-40 pounds (9-18 kg), wolverines are much smaller creatures than most of the predators they share habitat with, and so, says Fisher, naturally they need to exercise some discretion. “In nature, body size usually wins out.”
Answer to post #3... Number #10 - Norway Rat. Number #9 - Wild Boar. Number #8 - Bald Eagle. Number #7 - Black Bear. Number #6 - Bison. Number #5 - Grey Wolf. Number #4 - Crocodile. Number #3 - Mountain Lion. Number #2 - Wolverine. and Number #1 - Grizzly.
Of course these on-line lists are far from scientific. Probably made by some pastry chef. Missing are the Alligator, the Golden Eagle, and the Polar Bear. I agree with the number #1 answer; but will certainly not argue about it.  Great video of a close wolverine encounter. From Brave Wilderness, must watch.   *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author
 *This image is copyright of its original author The rather gracile skeleton of the wolverine. 
@Shir Babr :
About #10: "The rather gracile skeleton of the wolverine." Matter of opinion of course, but no, when I see this skeleton you show, we clearly see it's a rather stocky animal. Add an artic animal's fur by your imagination, you are in front of a beast which walks the belly just above the ground. The neck vertebras are thick, as well as the femurs and the humerus... (05-31-2018, 09:54 AM)Spalea Wrote: @Shir Babr : Well, I don't have to imagine it covered by fur when we know the appearance of the live animal. A similar example is the snow leopard, whose pelage gives the impression of a stocky, short legged animal. (05-31-2018, 12:56 PM)Shir Babr Wrote:(05-31-2018, 09:54 AM)Spalea Wrote: @Shir Babr : Well, we perhaps don't have the same definition of "gracile" or "stocky". |
| Users browsing this thread: |
| 3 Guest(s) |