Wolverine

Wolverine

Gulo gulo

Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Denali National Park

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%

5 Verified sightings at Denali National Park From 2019 to 2026
34 In all 4 parks
September Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Wolverine

The wolverine ( WUUL-və-reen, US also WUUL-və-REEN; Gulo gulo), also called the carcajou or quickhatch (from East Cree, kwiihkwahaacheew), is the largest land-dwelling member of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscular carnivore and a solitary animal. The wolverine has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size, with the documented ability to kill prey many times larger than itself.

The wolverine is found primarily in remote reaches of the northern boreal forests and subarctic and alpine tundra of the Northern Hemisphere, with the greatest numbers in Northern Canada, the U.S. state of Alaska, the mainland Nordic countries of Europe, and throughout western Russia and Siberia. Its population has steadily declined since the 19th century owing to trapping, range reduction and habitat fragmentation. The wolverine has become essentially absent from the southern end of its range in both Europe and North America.

The wolverine's questionable reputation as an insatiable glutton (reflected in its Latin genus name Gulo, meaning "glutton") may be in part due to a false etymology. The less common name for the animal in Norwegian, fjellfross, meaning "mountain... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kluane National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
2 Denali National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
3 Banff National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
4 Glacier National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Moscow Zoo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
2 Paris Zoological Park 🇫🇷 France In captivity
3 Brno Zoo 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
4 Ranua Wildlife Park 🇫🇮 Finland In captivity
5 Parc Omega 🇨🇦 Canada In captivity
6 Northwest Trek Wildlife Park 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
7 Zoo sauvage Saint-Félicien 🇨🇦 Canada In captivity
8 Whipsnade Zoo 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
9 Minnesota Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
10 Safari West 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
11 Tierpark Sababurg 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
12 Columbus Zoo and Aquarium 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
13 Parc animalier de Sainte-Croix 🇫🇷 France In captivity
14 Highland Wildlife Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
15 Ähtäri Zoo 🇫🇮 Finland In captivity
16 Cotswold Wildlife Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
17 Polar Park 🇳🇴 Norway In captivity
18 Detroit Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
19 Silesian Zoological Garden 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
20 Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
21 Hellabrunn Zoo 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
22 Night Safari 🇸🇬 Singapore In captivity
23 ZooMontana 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
24 Bristol Zoo Project 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
25 Tierwelt Herberstein 🇦🇹 Austria In captivity
26 Singapore Zoo 🇸🇬 Singapore In captivity
27 Zoo Opole 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
28 Dudley Zoo 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
29 GaiaZOO 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
30 Budapest Zoo & Botanical Garden 🇭🇺 Hungary In captivity
31 Зоопарк ХІІ Місяців 🇺🇦 Ukraine In captivity
32 Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
33 Salzburg Zoo 🇦🇹 Austria In captivity
34 Thompson Park Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
35 Alaska Zoo 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
36 River Wonders 🇸🇬 Singapore In captivity
37 Leningrad Zoo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
38 Zoopark Limpopo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
39 Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory 🇨🇦 Canada In captivity
40 Randers Tropical Zoo 🇩🇰 Denmark In captivity
41 Ralph Perkins II Wildlife Center and Woods Garden 🇺🇸 United States In captivity
42 Bristol Zoo 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
43 Tierpark Schlichtweg 15 in München 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
44 Zoo Schlichtweg 11 in München 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
45 Zoo Siebenbrunner Straße 6 in München 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Wolverine in Denali National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Wolverine sighting in Denali National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 17th most-seen of the 19 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Wolverine in Denali National Park?

September

In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Wolverine in Denali National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–May and October, the lowest months. November to February have too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Wolverine?

Between noon and 3 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wolverine sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Denali National Park the best place to see a Wolverine?

Among the best

Of the 4 parks where we can rate Wolverine sightings, Denali National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Kluane National Park (Canada, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Wolverine live in Denali National Park?

Same order: Carnivora

The closest relatives of the Wolverine that you can see in Denali National Park (order Carnivora, Carnivorans) are Brown Bear (about 80%), Red Fox (about 30%) and Gray Wolf (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Wolverine sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Wolverine is recorded against all the mammals logged in Denali National Park (5 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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