Wolverine(aka: Gulo gulo)
Status: Federal Endangered Species, about to be reintroduced to Colorado!
Fun Fact: Wolverines may look like a bear and smell like a skunk, but they are technically weasels!
Historically, wolverines ranged south from Canada and Alaska through the mountainous regions of the West to California, Utah, and Colorado. Today, wolverines inhabit high-elevation areas of the Northern Cascades in Washington, and the northern Rocky Mountains in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. There are fewer than 400 wolverines in the contiguous US. They are vulnerable to climate change and protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Colorado’s wolverine population went extinct due to unregulated trapping and poisoning in the early 1900s. The last wolverine confirmed in Colorado was a lone male who wandered 500 miles from the Tetons in Wyoming to central Colorado in 2009, and then to North Dakota where he was shot. Colorado continues to have prime habitat for wolverines, but female wolverines tend to stay closer to where they were born and are unlikely to make the difficult journey to Colorado.
But recently, Rocky Mountain Wild and our partners secured the first step toward reintroduction of wolverines!
In 2024, Rocky Mountain Wild led our coalition’s successful effort to lobby state legislators to introduce and pass a bipartisan bill to authorize Colorado Parks and Wildlife to reintroduce wolverines to Colorado (SB-24-171 Restoration of Wolverines). This was a huge milestone in the effort to restore wolverines to Colorado.
In addition to convincing a bipartisan coalition of legislators to pass the bill, we brought substantial positive media and public attention to the possibility of restoring wolverines to Colorado. This year, Rocky Mountain Wild is leading coalition efforts to build public and political support needed to ensure that plans for wolverine reintroduction continue to move forward. We will also track potential Trump administration activity that could get in the way of plans for wolverine reintroduction in Colorado.
In addition, we will work with wolverine experts to provide input to state and federal agencies to ensure that the best available science is used in planning the reintroduction, and making decisions about how wolverines and their habitat will be managed in Colorado.
Here are some things you can do to get wild about wolverines:
Join us:
Join us for an online webinar, Get Wild About Wolverines!
Join us in a discussion and Q&A with Rebecca Watters, founder of the Mongolian Wolverine Project! Rebecca will be talking about wolverine ecology and why restoration in Colorado is so important. Megan, our Conservation Biologist, will speak about the process for bringing them to Colorado. There will be ample time for all your wolverine questions!
When: Wednesday, May 14, 6:00-7:00 pm Mountain Time.
Registration: This is a free event, but it is limited. Registration to save your spot!
Read:
For Adults:
- “Wolverines and Wilderness: A review of wolverine response to human disturbance,” by Matthew Scrafford, Environmental Reviews.
- “Wolverines are a litmus test on human values: Whether these charismatic animals persist first requires an honest reflection on our own values,” by Rebecca Watters, Mountain Journal.
- The Wolverine Restoration Bill (SB24-171)
- Wolverine Restoration FAQs
- Press Release: Colorado Legislature Passes Historic Bill to Restore Wolverines to Colorado
- Read about M-56 (aka: Marty)
For Kids:
- National Geographic Kids – Wolverine webpage
- The Wolverine Foundation Kid’s Page
Do:
For Adults:
- Participate in 2025 Wanderlust Wolverine Summer! We sent four wolverines from our office in Denver to see how far they can go this summer. Each wolverine has a number and a QR code that directs folks to our fundraising page. If you receive a wolverine, be sure to let us know where you received it, as we will be tracking how far our wolverines travel. You can also start a peer-to-peer campaign or donate to one to help raise funds for wolverine reintroduction as well as the protection, connection, and restoration of other species in the southern Rocky Mountain region!
For Kids:
- Color our wolverine coloring page and send to Chris
Listen and Watch:
For Adults:
- “Learn about our soon-to-be new neighbors, wolverines!” During the 2024 Colorado Endangered Species Week, Rocky Mountain Wild held a conversation about our soon-to-be new neighbors with speakers Ph.D. student Rosie Sanchez, Megan Mueller from Rocky Mountain Wild, and Dr. Stefan Ekernas of Denver Zoo. They discussed why it’s necessary to reintroduce them, more about the bill, how we can easily co-exist with them, and answered audience questions.
- Wolverine stories: Rebecca Watters at TEDxBozeman (11 minutes)
- National Parks Traveler Podcast: Wolverine Recovery in Colorado (47 minutes)
- Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission virtual meeting with the conservation community, presentation on wolverine and wolverine reintroduction (starts at 2:54:00)
For the Whole Family:
- Wolverine: Chasing the Phantom Documentary (53 minutes)
- Finding Gulo documentary (27 minutes):
For Kids:
- Wolverine — The Fierce Forest Predator from Learnxplore (4 minutes)
- Wolverine at Zoo Montana (2 minutes)
- Read with Chimey: National Geographic Kids — Wolverines (21 minutes)
Join us for the rest of the Colorado Endangered Species Week events!