Wolverine Captured in Utah for First Time in State History

A live wolverine has been captured by researchers in Utah for the first time in state history.

Only eight wolverines have been spotted before in the state since 1979, and until now, none have ever been captured.

Biologists are now hoping to track the creature to learn more about it, ABC7 reported. The wolverine is estimated to be about 4 years old and weighs 28 pounds, the news outlet said.

Wolverines are extremely rare. In 2016, it was predicted there were only 300 left in the U.S. They need a vast habitat as they cover around 15 miles a day. Researchers predict that their numbers will continue to dwindle due to habitat loss caused by climate change.

The wolverine was caught following suspicions that it was responsible for 18 sheep deaths in Rich County, near Salt Lake City, NBC News reported.

To investigate further, U.S. Agriculture Department officers undertook a livestock protection surveillance last week, during which they saw the animal feasting on a dead sheep.

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources said the wolverine was found in a trap—which had been filled with sheep meat—midmorning on March 11.

It was sedated and brought in for an evaluation. Biologists put a collar on the animal to allow them to monitor its movements, before they released the wolverine in the Uinta Mountains, NBC reported.

Jim Christensen, wildlife manager for the northern region at the Division of Wildlife Resources, told NBC it was "once-in-a-lifetime" experience. The collar will allow biologists to learn more about the secretive species in the state, he said.

"Four different wolverine sightings were confirmed in Utah in 2021. Were we seeing the same animal or different animals last year? Having a collar on this animal will help us solve that riddle," he told NBC.

Mark Hadley, of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, spoke to local media about the sighting, ABC7 reported.

"The opportunity to capture and be able to study an animal that we've wanted to know about for a long time, but that's so difficult to capture and get a GPS collar on, so you can track it, it's really cool to have been able to," Hadley said, according to ABC7.

Wolverines, while resembling a small bear, are the largest member of the weasel family. They have the ability to take down prey much larger then themselves, meaning they can cause a problem for livestock.

Historically, they lived in the Sierra Nevada mountains in California, and the Southern Rocky Mountains in Wyoming, New Mexico and Colorado.