The North American wolverine will receive long-awaited threatened species protections under a new proposal from the Biden administration. Scientists have warned that climate change is threatening the wolverine’s snowy mountain habitat, increasing the risk of extinction for the elusive species.
Historically, wolverines were wiped out across most of the U.S. by unregulated trapping and poisoning campaigns in the early 1900s. Today, only about 300 wolverines survive in isolated groups at high elevations in the northern Rocky Mountains.
The proposed protections follow decades of disputes over the risks of climate change and the long-term survival of wolverines. With increasing temperatures altering snowfall patterns and raising sea levels, a growing number of animals, plants, and insects are facing growing risks.
In the coming decades, warming temperatures are expected to shrink the mountain snowpack that wolverines rely on to dig dens and raise their young. The proposal to protect them aims to address the ongoing and increasing impacts of climate change and associated habitat degradation and fragmentation.
The decision to protect wolverines under the Endangered Species Act comes after protections were rejected under the previous administration. The move has been welcomed by environmentalists and conservationists who argue that it gives the wolverine a fighting chance for survival.
However, some Republican lawmakers have voiced concerns about the potential restrictions on activities in wolverine habitats, including snowmobiling and skiing. Despite these concerns, government scientists have highlighted the importance of protecting the remaining habitat strongholds for wolverines.
The proposed protections would also allow for some accidental killing of wolverines as long as trappers report any captures within five days and use best practices to avoid harming the animals. Additionally, wolverine populations live in remote areas of Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Washington state, with individual animals documented in California, Utah, Colorado, and Oregon in recent years.
Overall, the proposal to protect wolverines acknowledges the challenges posed by climate change and habitat loss, aiming to give the species a chance for survival in the face of increasing threats.
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