Wolverine
Gulo gulo
Seen by the oracleIts power
It takes on prey five times bigger than itself, and crunches frozen bones that nothing else can crack.
Estimated wild population
About 30,000 to 50,000
Trend
Declining in some regions (Vulnerable in Europe, Least Concern worldwide)
Range
Far North (Scandinavia, Russia, Canada, Alaska)
Main threat
Hunting, trapping, habitat loss, climate change (not enough snow)
Meet it
It really exists. It is waiting for you at the Parc Animalier d’Auvergne.
The wolverine is the biggest land-living member of the weasel family. It is not very big (up to 18 kg), but it has a legendary reputation for fierceness and stamina, which earned it the nickname “snow devil”. For its body weight, its jaws are among the most powerful in the whole animal kingdom: it can crush frozen bones that even wolves leave behind. Always on the move, it can travel 45 km in a single day through deep snow, looking for dead animals or live prey up to five times its size. It lives alone and defends its territory, marking its huge home range (up to 2,000 km²) with musky scents.
What the Park does
Legal protection in most countries, reserves in Scandinavia and Canada