Some sad news. They could never explain where the wolverine came from. The likely scenario is from Ontario. Either way, the wolverine died of natural causes. It probably ate well in the lower thumb of Michigan. The wolverine state loses its last known wolverine.
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According to articles that I read, the DNA didn’t match up with any Canadian populations closest to Michigan…a very real possibility is that it was released. One article also suggested that Michigan never had wolverines since Native Americans in Michigan weren’t familiar with them when white trappers first arrived.
I’m not sure why this would be “sad news” as Mike depicted it — wild or not, the wolverine appeared to have died of natural causes and that’s nature for you — she doesn’t pick any favorites.
Just went back to that article — the DNA didn’t match up with any North American populations…could it have been a wolverine of Eurasian descent released into the wild?
It’s possible, but usually those animals won’t survive for six years in the wild unless they have a very easy source of food.
Herb – I find it sad because it’s the last known wolverine in a state nicknamed after them. I find all places named after extinct animals to be sad. For example, there are places in Wisconsin called “Moose’s Bar”, kind of a melancholy reminder that they no longer really exist there unless one of the dwindling U.P. or Minnesota moose wander on over.
I know that mother nature doesn’t play favorites, but it kind of stinks when it’s the last one in a large geographic area.
I agree with the melancholy reminder as you mentioned, I can appreciate that sentiment regarding geographical references to “moose”, “elk”, “wolf”, etc. where those animals no longer exist but the names serve as a reminder that they were once there. That said, there’s something odd about this wolverine that doesn’t quite add up…
Members of the Mustelidae family are very much like cats in the sense that they’re never truly domesticated and their wild instincts are never totally bred out of them. I’ve spent a lot of time around ferrets and domesticated mink, and trust me when I say they’re animals that never truly lose their wildness. Wolverines especially are extremely resourceful animals and can live off carrion such as road kill, etc…so I wouldn’t eliminate the possibility that this *could* be a released animal.