A new bill seeks to bring wolverine back to California

The Wolverines could be preparing for a comeback in California.

A new bill seeks to reintroduce these solitary, muscular carnivores into the state's mountainous regions, where they were hunted, poisoned and trapped into oblivion for more than 100 years.

Wolverines are extremely rare in the lower 48 states and received federal protection under the Endangered Species Act in November. Conservation efforts in California date back to the early 1970s, when wolverines were classified as a fully protected species under the state's Fish and Game Act and listed as endangered under the state's Endangered Species Act.

Several sightings of the elusive wolverine in May in California's High Sierra region sparked a wave of excitement. This was reportedly the second sighting in the Golden State in a century.

“Although wolverines are solitary and live at higher elevations, California is part of their natural habitat, and seeing them here should not be rare and will not be in the future if we can carefully manage reintroduction,” Assemblywoman Laura Friedman said. D-Glendale), who introduced California legislation.

Friedman, the front-runner for a seat in the US House of Representatives, described Bill No. AB 2722 as “an important first step towards making this future a reality.”

The Center for Biological Diversity sponsored the bill.

Wolverines resemble small bears but are the largest member of the weasel family, weighing up to 40 pounds. They have powerful jaws capable of taking down predators much larger than themselves. Snowshoe-like feet allow them to walk over deep powder, and they have been known to traverse great distances. They are notorious loners, with males occupying territories of up to 500 square miles.

“They are like a guardian animal for mountain climbers, skiers and introverts,” said Rebecca Watters, executive director of the Wolverine Foundation. “They like to hang out on their own, running around in the mountains all the time.”

No one has tried to return the animal to the areas from which it disappeared, but two countries are exploring this possibility. Less than three weeks after California's bill was introduced in mid-February, Colorado lawmakers proposed legislation to reintroduce wolverine.

Proponents in both states said there is plenty of habitat to accommodate the animals, which naturally live at low densities in snowy and high-altitude areas. But some researchers would prefer to see the species reproduce naturally, expressing concern that wolverines could die during the reintroduction process, while there is no guarantee of success.

If AB 2722 succeeds, it would not immediately trigger an effort to repatriate the animals. Instead, it will provide policymakers with data that can inform future efforts.

The proposed legislation directs the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to “conduct a feasibility study on a supplementation or reintroduction program, with the goal of reestablishing a viable population of this species in California,” according to a press release.

The work will be carried out as part of a planned condition assessment of the wolverine required by law passed last year. SB 147 requires CDFW to develop a plan to fully assess the population status of each protected species by July 1, 2024; Wolverine is one of the animals included in the list.

Before last year, the last sighting of a wolverine in California was in 2018. The animal, nicknamed “Buddy,” is believed to have come from Idaho.

David Garcellon, president of the Institute for Wildlife Studies, is hopeful that California's bill will succeed, even as he described reintroductions as “always a fluke.”

For 20 years, Garcelon has been thinking about bringing back the animals, which he calls an “icon of the wild.” Garcelon, who has experience reintroducing other species, spent 10 years authoring a document exploring the feasibility of reintroducing wolves to California, which he shared with state wildlife officials.

To alleviate concerns about the animals' safety, his plan entailed commissioning hunters with permits to kill wolverines in places where they still roam, such as British Columbia and the Yukon, to bring him live animals.

“So, I'm basically moving and releasing a Wolverine that otherwise would have been a hat,” Garcelon said.

He would release a small number of wolves at first, in a field of eight to 12 people, to see what would happen. To entice female wolves to stay put, he may pin the carcasses of deadly deer to trees. He then releases the males, which may continue when they notice a “lady wolverine” in the area, he said.

However, without a permit from the state, he was unable to proceed. He said he has since presented his ideas to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which last year listed the wolves as endangered.

“I really want to give wolverines a chance,” Garcelon said, adding that given the uncertainties posed by climate change and other factors, “I'm not really in favor of waiting another 50 years to see if they can do it on their own.” “.

Watters, of the Wolverine Foundation, criticizes the reintroduction efforts. When animals are moved, some inevitably die, while creating holes in the group from which they were taken, she said.

“We always prefer to see natural dispersion,” she said. “And we know Wolverine does this.” She noted their recovery in the Rocky and Cascade Mountains over the past 50 years after they were “expelled all the way back to Canada.” Young males set out for California and Colorado, but neither state had a stable population.

If reintroduction is attempted, it may answer questions about whether old laws can be applied to new threats.

She said the wolverine would serve as a “test case for whether or not the Endangered Species Act is equipped to address conservation” amid climate change.

According to Waters, the law was intended to protect animals from isolated threats, such as hunting or traps. But climate change is systemic. She said seeing how the tools are applied to high alpine wolverines inhabiting the snow will reveal whether they are sufficient.

“These reintroduction attempts are kind of on the edge of questions that are going to be asked for a lot of species in the next century,” she said.