Title :

Wolverine

Category: North American Mammals

Facts about Wolverines, "Scientific name for Wolverine is Gulo gulo". Wolverine is a Gulo type of small, powerful animal that resembles a bear and that comes from the Weasel family. The Wolverine are the biggest animals in their family, and they require a lot of space to wander. These strong animals are lonely, and the Wolverine may travel a maximum distance of 15 Miles (24 kilometers) per day looking for food. Due to these habitat requisites, the Wolverines largely live in distant taiga, boreal forests, and tundra in the northern parts of Asia, Europe and North America. Similar to several other mustelids, Wolverine has powerful anal scent glands employed for sexual signaling and marking territory. The pungent smell has offered the Wolverine the nicknames nasty cat and skunk bear. The Wolverines have a unique upper molar in the back part of their mouth, which can rotate 90 degrees. The special feature allows the Wolverine to rip off meat from carrion or prey that has been frozen solid.

Features of Wolverines

The mature wolverine has the body of an average-sized dog. Usually, male Wolverine breeds are bigger than the females by 30%, with the body length ranging from 26 inches to 42 inches (66 to 106.6 cm). The length of the tail of the Wolverine ranges from 6 11/16 inches to 10 3/16 inches. The body mass of the male Wolverine will be twice that of the females, ranging from 20 pounds to 55 pounds (9 to 25 kg). The Wolverine have a shoulder height, ranging from 12 inches to 18 inches (30.4 to 45.7 cm).

The wolverine is a solid and well-built animal, with small legs and eyes. They have a big, circular head, with small rounded ears, and it looks like more than other mustelids. Though legs of this animal are short, its big, five-toed paws and plantigrade stance enable the animal to move through profound snow.

Wolverine animals have bulky, dark, greasy fur that is highly hydrophobic, offering the Wolverine necessary protection against frost. This has shown the way to its traditional fame among trappers and hunters as a lining in parkas and jackets in cold conditions. A pale-silvery facial cover is different in some animals, and a light buff line runs across from the shoulders down the side. Some wolverine animals display famous white hair areas on their chests and throats.

Diet of Wolverines

Wolverine animals are omnivores and they feed on vegetarian fare, such as berries and plants during the summer season. The Wolverines are stubborn predators and they easily grab and eat small prey, such as rodents and rabbits. The Wolverines are capable of attacking animals that are larger than their body size and feed on their meat. They also feed on the corpses of bigger animals, such as deer, elk and caribou.

Behavior of Wolverines

The wolverine animal is a versatile and powerful killer and scavenger. Prey mostly consists of small to average-sized mammals, but the wolverine animal has been recorded slaughtering prey such as mature deer that are several times bigger than it. Wolverines are amazingly strong for their body size, and they may protect against bigger or more numerous killers such as bears or wolves.

Reproduction of Wolverine

Thriving wolverine males will form lifespan bonds with two or three female animals that they will visit rarely, whereas other males are left with no mate. Mating season of the wolverine starts in the summer season, but the real implantation of the embryo in the female uterus is continued pending early winter, delaying the growth of the fetus. The development period is usually 30 to 50 days, and litters of normally two or three juvenile Wolverines are born during the spring.

The average lifespan of the wolverine breed ranges from 7 years to 12 years.