Abstract
The wolverine, Gulogulo, is an endangered species in China. This is the first report of the overall status of wolverines in China. The geographic distribution and population sizes of wolverines in the Greater Khingan and Altai Mountains were surveyed by line transect from 1996–2000 and in 2011, respectively. We identified two geographically distinct groups in the Great Khingan Mountains, with a total population size of about 200 individuals throughout the region (approximately 80,000 km2). Wolverines were also confirmed to be present in the Altai Mountains, where about 100 individuals occupied approximately 28,000 km2 of mountain forest and tundra. Prey depletion and habitat loss, which are correlated with increasing human activities, are the main reasons for wolverine population declines in China.
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Acknowledgments
We thank the State Forestry Administration, P.R. China and Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences for financial support, and thank Khanas National Nature Reserve of Sinkiang for the assistance with fieldwork. We are very grateful to Jean-François Robitaille, Department of Biology, Laurentian University, who revised the language of our manuscript and provided helpful comments.
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This work was supported by the Rare and Endangered Species Investigation and Monitoring Project of the State Forestry Administration (41309408) and the Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences Fund.
The online version is available at http://www.springerlink.com
Corresponding editor: Hu Yanbo.
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Zhu, S., Zhang, S. & Zhang, M. Update on the status of wolverines in China. J. For. Res. 28, 425–429 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-016-0310-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11676-016-0310-6