DNRE Confirms Death of Michigan’s Only Known Wild Wolverine
Michigan’s only known wild wolverine has died.
A female wolverine, first spotted in the Thumb in Feb. 24, 2004,
was
found dead by hikers at the Minden Bog in the Minden City State
Game
Area Saturday.
Todd Rann of Marysville and Morgan Graham of New Baltimore
spotted what
they thought was a dead beaver, partially submerged in the water
near a
beaver dam. Rann pulled it from the water and realized it was
a
wolverine. The pair called the Report All Poaching hot line.
Department
of Natural Resources and Environment Conservation Officers Seth
Rhodea
and Bob Hobkirk responded immediately and retrieved the
animal.
The officers reported no visible signs of trauma.
DNRE wildlife biologist Arnie Karr, who originally verified the
animal
was a wolverine after it was treed by coyote hunters in 2004,
said the
carcass will be sent to the DNRE veterinary lab for necropsy.
The
department plans to have the specimen mounted and displayed,
probably at
the visitor center at nearby Bay City State Recreation Area.,
Karr
said.
The animal was the first wolverine ever actually verified in
Michigan.
Biologists say that if wolverines were ever native to Michigan,
they
were extirpated about 200 years ago.
At the time of the wolverine’s sighting, DNRE Director
Rebecca
Humphries signed an emergency order protecting the animal
from
harassment or harm. The animal, which has been seen,
photographed and
videoed by numerous people since it was discovered, was thought
to be
alive and well until it was discovered dead Saturday.
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