Rare Wolverine Sighted in Sierra Nevada
The wolverine lives!
The animal, not the comic book character.
Scientists just captured video of the creature in the Tahoe National Forest, hanging out like it ain’t no thing. But it is a thing. A very big thing. Because wolverines were once believed to be extinct in the Sierra Nevada.
Experts thought the state’s wolverines had been wiped out by the fur trapping trade that boomed in the 1900s. There have been rare, intermittent sightings since then, but nothing so clearly documented as this since the 1920s.
The footage was captured by officials with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“When you see them on video, a wolverine is a pretty exciting species to have in California,” said Chris Stermer, a biologist with the agency. “With the population we have in California, thinking that we can have a wild wolverine amongst us is pretty amazing. It really begins to restore our larger carnivores back to California.”
Speaking of larger carnivores, the grey wolf is also making a comeback further north after a century-long hiatus. So watch out.
Image Credit: Flickr User fiskfisk, https://flic.kr/p/558gCv via (CC BY 2.0)
