Wolverine near Bierstadt

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HikerGuy
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by HikerGuy »

dstannard wrote: Thu Jun 25, 2020 10:51 am Hey All,

I think I saw a wolverine on Mt Evans near Bierstadt very recently, the guanella pass route. After the willows, right near the bottom of the gully. I was coming down and saw what looked like a medium sized dog with a bushy tail. It was way bigger than a marmot, and looked more like a bushy dog. Dark brown with some lighter colors. I had my dog with me, and had to grab him before I could get a picture. The animal climbed a boulder and slipped behind a large boulder, and was gone. This was Wednesday, June 17th, about 12:30pm. I only saw 2 or 3 other hikers on this route the whole day.

Anyone else seen anything up their recently? May have been a large marmot but I don’t think so.
Most likely an American marten aka pine marten.
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Alrightmax
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by Alrightmax »

If they accurately gauged its size, then it couldn't be a pine marten. They are much smaller.
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BostonBD
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by BostonBD »

Wolverines in Colorado are extremely rare. The only one that I was aware of happened to be on Mt. Evans(I was one of a few that were able to get a photo). That particular wolverine had a tracking device and was later killed in North Dakota in 2016. https://www.denverpost.com/2016/05/11/c ... th-dakota/
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tlerunner
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by tlerunner »

I think I saw a wolverine near Rawah Lake 2 a few years ago. At first I thought it was a bear cub but the legs were too short. Wish I could have got a picture ...
Wilbur Simmons
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by Wilbur Simmons »

Believe it or not, I haven't even seen any of these critters in person. So catching even a glimpse of them in the wild would totally blow my mind.
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XterraRob
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by XterraRob »

I am hopeful that wolverines in Colorado still exist.
RIP - M56
Re-introduce Grizzly Bears into the Colorado Wilderness™
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prairiechicken
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Re: Wolverine near Bierstadt

Post by prairiechicken »

Even in places where wolverines are known to still exist, they are extremely rare, secretive, and hard to detect. There is certainly a possibility that there are still a few here. They have also been known to disperse extremely long distances, as M56 did, traveling from the Tetons to Colorado and eventually to South Dakota. It's definitely possible that some wolverines have drifted south from Wyoming or Montana.

While it's unlikely to see a wolverine in Colorado, it is certainly not impossible. I hope there are still a few, or that they will recolonize Colorado from the northern Rockies.
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