The Lone Wolverine: Tracking Michigan's Most Elusive Animal

Summer, 2005

Summer, 2005 ✦ ✦ ✦ During June, the men had gotten some of their best pictures yet. But by the end of the month, as warmer weather arrived, they began to realize something was amiss. For the ‹rst time in over two months, the cameras took no pictures of the wolverine, only raccoons. By early July, they had over 50 pictures of raccoons but not a single new shot of the wolverine. Jeff knew by now that whenever raccoon images were in abundance on their cameras the wolverine wasn’t, and vice versa. Quite likely it was a matter of wise avoidance on the part of the raccoons, which knew better than to challenge an adult wolverine for food and only came around when they were con‹dent that the larger, ‹ercer mammal was nowhere in the vicinity. This was the longest period of time they’d gone without a single wolverine sighting since that ‹rst photograph back in March. Obviously, the raccoons knew something they didn’t. Both Jeff and Audrey suspected breeding season had something to do with it. Male wolverines were known to cover huge distances to satisfy their biological imperatives. Although the Thumb wolverine’s gender hadn’t been con‹rmed, even a female might travel more now in search of a mate. But just how far might that be? As far as anyone knew, this particular animal was well outside the range of any other wolverines. The closest known population was in northwestern Ontario, separated at this time of year by the impassible watery barrier of the Great Lakes. Breeding season could extend well into August. Jeff began to wonder how far it might roam in what would likely be a fruitless quest. Would his wolverine vanish forever? Something else happened that month too. On July 24, 2005, Jeff received an e-mail from Audrey Magoun: it seemed someone had re96 ported a possible wolverine sighting near Ancaster, Ontario, about 150 miles east of Ubly, Michigan. According to the report, the witness noted the animal had a reddish coloration to its fur, with black on the back and tail, remarkably similar to a wolverine’s markings. The witness also described the animal’s waddling gait as it moved away. Two similar sightings had also been reported in the same area, she said. Could it be Jeff’s wolverine? Jeff didn’t think it was—he’d ‹nally gotten new pictures of the wolverine on July 19. Despite its inexplicable disappearance, it was undoubtedly back and appeared to have settled in at home once more. But the news was still exciting. If the reports were correct and there really was a wild wolverine near Ancaster, then it meant a population was closer than previously known. That made it even more feasible that his wolverine had crossed the ice on Lake Huron to reach the Thumb. Instead of having to make its way 500 miles around and across two Summer, 2005 ✦ 97 The Wildlife Eye video system catches a photo of the wolverine’s huge claws as it searches the research site for food. Great Lakes from the distant north, it would only have had to make what might have been a week’s journey in wolverine terms. Audrey was quick to caution that the Ancaster “sighting” might easily have been something other than a wolverine. After all, most sightings reported to The Wolverine Foundation turned out to be something else on closer investigation. Jeff was keenly aware of the need for a healthy dose of skepticism when it came to eyewitness accounts. Each time his own pictures and articles were published, he was amazed at how many people called or wrote claiming to have seen wolverines in all kinds of unlikely locations and scenarios. One man insisted he had discovered a den on his back forty and that a male and female wolverine were hibernating there— something wolverines clearly never did. Wolverine conspiracies abounded, complete with tales of ominous military types obscuring evidence like some wildlife version of aliens inside Area 51. One of the most bizarre accounts was from a Mayville woman who wrote to con‹de that just a few years ago her cousin’s daughter had encountered a “scary-looking animal” lurking in a ditch as she waited for a school bus and had later positively identi‹ed it as a wolverine. Her cousin reported it to the DNR, she said, but was ignored...