4.3.2008 8:41 AM

Wolverine Probably Not From California, After All

Poop (Yes, Poop) Shows No Traces of California Origins

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Scientists believe a wolverine was photographed with a remote-controlled camera on Feb. 28 on the Tahoe National Forest. Evidence of wolverines in California has not been scientifically verified since the 1920s.

Photo: US Forest Service, Oregon State University

By Dan Shapley

The wolverine photographed to much fanfare in California last month is probably not from California at all, disappointing those who had sought to claim it as a remnant of extirpated wolverines not seen in the state for more than 80 years.

Intrepid researchers examined the genetic traces left behind in wolverine poop, and determined that a unique genetic marker did not match that of historic data from California wolverines, nor did it match current data from Washington wolverines, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The DNA shows it to be a relative, possibly, of Rocky Mountain wolverines. The genetic trace, though, is found in wolverines from Idaho to Alaska, leaving little definitive clues about the life history of the beast spotted in Tahoe National Forest.

Wherever it came from, it was seen in California, making it a first documented in the state since 1922.

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