There are four large carnivore species in Finland, all belonging to different families. The lynx is a feline, the wolf is a canine, the brown bear is from the family Ursus and the wolverine is from the family of weasels.
The wolverine (Gulo gulo) is our largest representative of the weasel family. The future of the wolverine depends on the success of other large carnivores, especially the wolf, because the wolverine is primarily a scavenger. It prefers to look for something to eat rather than something to hunt.
The wolverine's Latin and Finnish names are derived from its feeding habits: Gulo and ahma both mean "glutton". When the wolverine finds something to eat, it devours it quickly swallowing even the larger chunks of meat whole. As a predator the wolverine is a little clumsy, but in the right snow conditions the wolverine can kill several reindeer in quick succession. This is typical weasel behaviour: they kill animals for storage, so to speak.
Wed May 25 12:36:00 2016
The large carnivores roaming the Finnish wilderness include the brown bear, the wolf, the lynx and the wolverine. They are rarely seen in the wild, but they do leave behind signs of their existence: tracks, droppings, carcasses and broken ant hills and tree stumps. Large carnivores can also be heard: lynxes tend to growl in the spring and wolves like to howl, especially in the autumn.
It might be difficult to identify the tracks of large carnivores in the wild. The tracks of a wolf, for example, resemble those left by large dogs.
– A wolf's paw print is usually longer than it is wide, whereas a dog's paw print is usually round. It is still difficult to tell from an individual print whether it is definitely a dog's or a wolf's. Instead, the way the animal moves and behaves gives away the species, says Antti Härkälä, a research expert at Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke).
You can learn to identify both the tracks and sounds of the animals at suurpedot.fi.
An animal can also be identified by its droppings.
– Because the wolf eats meat, its droppings are dark and solid. The poop of a house dog that eats processed food is lighter in tone and less solid. Hair of prey animals is also often visible in wolf droppings, Härkälä concludes.
All sightings of large carnivores should be reported to the predator contact person of the local game management association, who will then verify the sighting and log it in the Tassu (Finnish for Paw) sighting system.
– The reporting of sightings is important, as the sightings help us determine the distribution and population numbers of large carnivores. The Tassu system is also used by the authorities and it is used as a basis for making various licence decisions, says Härkälä.
Reporting a large carnivore sighting does not mean that the sighted wolf will be immediately chased, for example. Not by any means.
– It is a data collection method with which we are trying to piece together all large carnivore sightings comprehensively across Finland. The more we know about these animals, the better we can make decisions regarding their conservation and hunting, Härkälä says.
Every large carnivore sighting is valuable in determining population numbers. Data on the movements and numbers of large carnivores is also collected with tracking collars, cub sightings, wildlife population censuses and by keeping track of the number of hunted animals.
– With modern technology we can analyse a wolf's droppings and isolate individual DNA that allows us to create an identifier for that particular wolf, for example. DNA samples give us detailed information on the movements of individual animals as well as packs of animals, says Härkälä.
Spring is a time of change in the lives of large carnivores. Bear cubs have already been born in the winter den, the mating season of wolves is over and the pups are born in early May. The lynx also gives birth in May/June.
Even though a large carnivore will rather avoid humans than prowl on us, you should never try to find a bear that has just woken up from hibernation, or follow a litter of wolves playing in the moss.
– Wolves and bears will usually detect humans before humans can detect them. The human might not even get a glimpse of the animal as it has already scurried away. If a large carnivore and a human come face to face, something has gone wrong. The human might have stumbled upon a bear's winter den, for example, or been caught between a mother bear and her cubs by accident, says Härkälä.
If you end up meeting a large carnivore in the wild, you should withdraw from the scene calmly.
Get to know the tracks and sounds of large carnivores online at suurpedot.fi.
If you come across tracks left by large carnivores, notify the local game management association. The association's contact person may be found in the national database of local game management associations and the Finnish Wildlife Agency, which is available online at riista.fi/en/game-administration/contact-information/.
An ordinary person does not have access to the Tassu sighting system, but everyone can view a less detailed map of large carnivore sightings in Finland at riistahavainnot.fi.
The wolverine moves in a unique manner, which leaves behind tracks that stand out because of their shape and large size. The wolverine moves either by jumping, which creates paired tracks, or by galloping, which leaves a slanted line where the impressions appear in threes. The wolverine's paw print ...
The wolverine preys on an extremely wide selection of animals from small mammals to deer species and full-grown reindeer.
The wolverine is a carrion feeder. As a predator it is clumsy when compared to our other large carnivores, but in the winter it can still kill several reindeer in quick succession.
The wolverine population has increased by approx. ten per cent a year over the last three decades.
The current management plan for the Finnish wolverine population was approved in 2014. The current plan is structured differently that previous plans. Now the actual management plan only details the goals of wolverine population management and the activities through which they are to be achieved. Th...
As a member of the European Union, Finland commits to taking EU legislation into account in its decision making. The Directives of the European Community are incorporated into national legislation, which extends their reach to also cover all private operators. The status of large carnivores is regul...
The hunting and fishing supervisors of the State Forest Enterprise (Metsähallitus) have revealed a suspected illegal wolverine killing in Taivalkoski. The police are investigating the case as a serious hunting offence.