# Wolverine Sighting?



## WillowCreekMan (Dec 17, 2014)

While backpacking the North Slope of the Uintas in August My son claims that the scout troop sighted a wolverine. Is this possible? or did they misidentify a very large badger?


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

It depends on just what they saw. There have been reported sightings of wolverines in Utah and Colorado. There is no mistaking a wolverine and a badger. The wolverine walks more upright like a dog where a badger is low slung and a totally different color.


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## hazmat (Apr 23, 2009)

Very possible the dwr had a wolverine visit one of their trail cameras a few years ago on the north slope near xmas meadows. 

No offense but coming from kids it could have been a badger. Or it very well could have been a wolverine


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## mrshmitty (Sep 23, 2015)

Didn't they find one that got hit by a car a few months ago around bear lake?


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## Packfish (Oct 30, 2007)

I think the one hit by the car was just outside of Kemmerer.


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## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

I saw a wolverine cross the road in front of me near meeks cabin some 7 or 8 years ago, so it is possible. but not likely. more likely is a pine martin which are relatively common. or a badger which are even more common. being scouts... with scout masters... I would question any animal identification unless they have a picture. it is doubtful that any of these good folks have ever seen a wolverine in the wild and I may be the first name that came to mind when they saw the critter. then again, its always possible.


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## 30-06-hunter (Sep 22, 2013)

WOLVERINES!! Flashback to the 80's there.


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

Kingfisher said:


> I saw a wolverine cross the road in front of me near meeks cabin some 7 or 8 years ago, so it is possible. but not likely. more likely is a pine martin which are relatively common. or a badger which are even more common. being scouts... with scout masters... I would question any animal identification unless they have a picture. it is doubtful that any of these good folks have ever seen a wolverine in the wild and I may be the first name that came to mind when they saw the critter. then again, its always possible.


There's a pretty significant difference in size between a pine marten and a wolverine. Pine Marten's weigh 1-3 pounds....wolverines weigh 20-55 pounds.


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## GaryFish (Sep 7, 2007)




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## Kingfisher (Jul 25, 2008)

remember we are talking scouts, most of whom wouldn't have a clue of a difference. especially if they have seen neither in the wild. a picture on a page looks the same unless you have scale for context.


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## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

We saw one when we did a fifty miler in the Uinta's when I was a scout, boy that was a while ago, we wouldn't have known what it was but our leader was a DWR biologist.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Wolverine










Badger










They look nothing like the same animal


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## Nambaster (Nov 15, 2007)

Here is a real Wolverine sighting that I found on youtube... This is what I thought of when I read the thread title.


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## NewbieScott (Aug 22, 2016)

mrshmitty said:


> Didn't they find one that got hit by a car a few months ago around bear lake?


Yes, the DNR or one of the other Utah wild life pages i follow shared it on Facebook not long ago. I don't remember where exactly, but it was definitely in Utah.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


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## NewbieScott (Aug 22, 2016)

NewbieScott said:


> Yes, the DNR or one of the other Utah wild life pages i follow shared it on Facebook not long ago. I don't remember where exactly, but it was definitely in Utah.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


Oops, my bad. It was a trail cam in the Uintas in 2014

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

It wouldn't surprise me, I saw a wolverine hunting in the Game's Fork near Kemmerer a few years back. Given the size of a wolverines range it would likely have overlapped into the Uintas. 
As for "they're just scouts" I know I as a scout and well before could identify wildlife way better than most adults. I have no clue what kind of kids are in that troop, so how can I know if they were reliable in that kind of an ID?


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

Depending on the scout I would take their word before I took their leaders word on what it was. I have seen some very inept leaders in the scouts. They know how to get the kids the merit badges but that is about it.


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## mrshmitty (Sep 23, 2015)

mrshmitty said:


> Didn't they find one that got hit by a car a few months ago around bear lake?


Here is the article.

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=40471215&nid=1288


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## hossblur (Jun 15, 2011)

Red Dawn, the single greatest movie ever made. Be honest, you all fantasized about runninng to the mountains when the russians attacked.

The "trail cam sighting" in the Uintas happened at a place they were hanging dead deer I believe in trees trying to get peculiar rather large coyotes to come to. That is according to the state trapper who was working the area at the time. Not sure how many giant coyotes came in, but I believe the number to have been 7 by the time old wolverine showed up. **This message will self destruct in 7 seconds***(There are no large, oversized coyotes in Utah)


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

This is my favorite thread.

.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

North Slope of Uintas, Feb 2014:
https://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=30554173

Wyoming, 20 miles south of Evanston, April 2014:
http://www.uintacountyherald.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=7118&page=72

Laketown, July 2016:
http://www.ksl.com/?sid=40471215&nid=1288&title=wolverine-found-in-utah-for-1st-time-since-1974


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## WillowCreekMan (Dec 17, 2014)

I have received further info about this sighting.

I trust the two adult leaders that were there with the ability to properly identify wildlife. They are both avid outdoors-men and hunters. One of them told me that "there is no way it was a badger and if it were a pine martin it needed to have its steroid prescription taken away". several of the boys I trust in identifying wildlife but there are two or three that wouldn't know an elk from a ground squirrel. Unfortunately the only one with a suitable camera was digging into his back pack to get it out when the animal vanished back into the thick conifer blow down that was next to the small stream where they spotted the animal


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## LostLouisianian (Oct 11, 2010)

Reminds me of back home in Louisiana. DWF says there are no mountain lions in LA despite numerous trail cam pics. However since there are none it is illegal to shoot them in LA and the DWF keeps reminding hunters not to shoot the mountain lions that aren't there. Go figger.


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