Wolverines In Oregon

I finally found this old post. I was worried it was gone forever. I had to put the images back in by hand, but I think it was worth it.

Separate posts on this blog deal extensively with wolverines in Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada. There are also three posts on the wolverine in California.

There have been few proven occurrences of wolverines in Oregon recently, but one was seen in the Wallowa Mountains and another was spotted along the Colombia River near Portland.

Three wolverines have been collected since 1965, one live and two dead. Further, aerial surveys in recent years have found discovered what appear to be wolverine tracks, snow tunnels, and in a few cases winter dens on the top of high Oregon peaks. The wolverine seems to be in best shape in Washington and then in Oregon.

Since then, wolverines have been reported from the Cascades, as noted above, and in addition in northeastern Oregon in the Blue Mountains, the Wallowas, and even on Steens Mountain in the far southeast of the state.

Strawberry Lake in the Blue Mountains in the Strawberry Lake Wilderness Area. There have been unverified wolverine sightings in the Blue Mountains lately, and I believe that a timber wolf was also seen here, probably a wanderer from Idaho. Another Great Basin Range in Eastern Oregon.

Steens Mountain in far southeast Oregon. There have been unverified wolverine sightings here recently, believe it or not. This is high desert, but note the road-killed wolverine above in similar high desert territory at the Dalles. The area used to be full of lakes and was very lush and productive. Various California Indian tribes like the Miwok, Yokuts and Ohlone probably originated here over 5,000 years ago during the wet weather. They then moved down the Oregon-California border to Lake Tahoe, where they crossed into the Delta. From there, they probably split to become the Ohlone, Miwok and Yokuts. These three language groups do seem to be related, but the degree of their relatedness is not known. Some say they are all just under Penutian, with no special relationship amongst them.

Wolverine tracks have been seen in an undated sighting on the Diamond Lakes Ranger District of the Umpqua.

In 1965, a wolverine was shot on Three-Fingered Jack Mountain in the Oregon Cascades. This was the first confirmed report since 1912.

Three-Fingered-Jack Mountain in the Oregon Cascades, where a wolverine was shot by a hunter in 1965, the first verified report of a wolverine since 1912. At the time, the wolverine was thought to be extinct in the state.

In Oregon, a wolverine was trapped in 1986 and another was found dead in 1992, but precise locales were not given.

There was an incredible finding west of the Dalles at Rowena on the Colombia River in 1990 when a wolverine was run over by a car. This area is hot, dry Great Basin steppe and is far from any wilderness area. This goes to show that wolverines live in many locales in the West, including the high, dry Great Basin plateaus and mountains.

The Dalles near Rowena Gorge. It’s hard to believe that wolverines live in such hot and dry terrain, but apparently they do. A wolverine was killed by a car here on Highway 84 in 1990.

Tracks were confirmed on the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest in the northeastern part of Oregon in the 1990’s, and during the same period, possible wolverine sign was detected on the Malheur, Deschutes, Rogue, and Fremont National Forests.

An unnamed lake at the end of an unnamed trail in the Wallowa Mountains in far Northeast Oregon. This is definitely a Great Basin Range.

In addition, wolverine tracks were seen at Snow Bunny Snow Park on the Mount Hood National Forest in 1990.

In October 1990, a hunter saw a wolverine at Mill Creek six miles north of Prospect in the Rogue River NF. See the Mill Creek photo below.

In Autumn 1992, a wolverine was seen on Dead Indian Road near Lily Glen.

This is Dead Indian Road in the Umpqua National Forest. There was an unverified wolverine sighting seen here in Autumn 1992 near the Lily Glen Equestrian Area, an historical site that preserves one of the area’s first settlements.

In October 1990, a hunter saw a wolverine at Mill Creek six miles north of Prospect in the Rogue River NF.

Mill Creek Falls north of Prospect, Oregon in the Rogue River Gorge. There was an unverified wolverine sighting on Mill Creek in October 1990. An elk hunter saw one at his camp 6 miles north of Prospect.

In 1993, a wolverine was spotted during summer on Road 100 in the Rogue River National Forest north or Rancheria Road.

This is a recent photo of the area along Cobleigh Road in Butte Falls, Oregon. In summer 1993, there was an unverified sighting of a wolverine on Road 100 in the Rogue River NF, which is about 6 miles northwest of here. This is in the same general area as the sighting around Prospect, Oregon, in the Rogue River Gorge.

Early March surveys by airplane in 1997-98 shot video found 12 sets of tracks, two snow tunnels, and one possible wolverine den on the Mount Thielsen Wilderness and two sets of tracks on the Rogue/Umpqua Divide Wilderness, both on the Umpqua National Forest. The elevation in the Mount Thielsen Wilderness were 7,000-7,200 feet

On March 8, 1997, state and federal biologists found three sets of possible wolverine tracks on 7,000 foot+ ridgelines north of Mt. Thielsen in the Mt. Thielsen Wilderness on the Umpqua National Forest. One set of tracks included a possible wolverine den. On the same day, researchers noted possible wolverine tracks at the head of Devil’s Canyon on nearly Mt. Bailey (8,375 feet). Mt. Thielsen is a 9,182 foot peak. On March 20, 1998, a federal biologist spotted eight sets of possible wolverine tracks and two possible wolverine snow tunnels in this wilderness area. The elevations in the Mount Thielsen Wilderness were 7,000-7,200 feet.

The spectacular sweeping and dense forests of the Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness. On March 10-11, 1998, state and federal biologists spotted two possible sets of wolverine tracks here.

In 1998 in more March surveys, more tracks were found at 8,000 feet on Mt. McLoughlin and on Devil’s Peak in the Sky Lakes Wilderness in the Winema and Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forests.

Devil’s Peak (7,300 feet) in the Sky Lakes Wilderness south of Crater Lake National Park. Possible wolverine tracks were seen by an aerial crew here on March 20, 1998. Note the ugly clearcuts in the background. This is why I oppose clearcutting so much. It’s devastating to a forest to cut it like that.

Tracks were seen in 1998 at Fuller Lake in the Boulder Creek Wilderness.

A spectacular shot of the Boulder Creek Wilderness in Oregon. Photo taken by T.A. Klingenberg. On March 10-11, 1998, surveyors found possible wolverine tracks here. In 2001, there was an unverified sighting of a wolverine along the Jessie Wright segment of the Umpqua Trial. This segment of the trail goes through the Boulder Creek Wilderness.

There was an unverified sighting of a wolverine on the Umpqua Trail near Roseberg, Oregon in 2001 along the Jessie Wright Trail Segment in the Umpqua National Forest. See the Umpqua Trail photo below.

There was an unverified sighting of a wolverine on the Umpqua Trail near Roseberg, Oregon in 2001 along the Jessie Wright Trail Segment in the Umpqua National Forest.

The North Umpqua Trail on the Umpqua National Forest. There was an unverified sighting of a wolverine here in 2001 in Jessie Wright segment of the trail in the Boulder Creek Wilderness.

From 2009-2011, a biologist couple recorded three male wolverines on their baited trailcams in the Wallowas. They probably came from Idaho. Presently, in 2026, the group of three is down to just one elderly wolverine. The Wallowas have wolves and may even have grizzly bears.

In 2026, a wolverine was photographed along the Colombia River near Portland. This isn’t quite their habitat, but see the wolverine found dead in the Dalles in 1990.

Also in this year, in 2026, a wolverine was photographed along the Oregon Coast, and was then seen near a handful of other Oregon coastal towns. People may have been seeing the same wolverine repeatedly.

In addition, this year a wolverine was seen in the Willamette Valley, which is very odd. It appears that in the Northwest, wolverines can use all sorts of terrain.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife feels that wolverines occur or are suspected to occur in the following counties: Baker, Clackamas, Crook, Deschutes, Douglas, Grant, Harney, Hood River, Jackson, Jefferson, Klamath, Lake, Lane, Linn, Malheur, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa, Wasco, and Wheeler.

References

Biodiversity Legal Foundation, Predator Conservation Alliance, Defenders of Wildlife, Northwest Ecosystem Alliance, and Superior Wilderness Action Network. (2000). Petition for a rule to list the wolverine (Gulo gulo luscus) as Threatened or Endangered under the Endangered Species Act within the contiguous United States. Submitted to the U.S. Dept. of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service on July 11, 2000.

Predator Conservation Alliance. (2001) Predator Conservation Alliance’s Literature Summary – Draft – January 24, 2001 – Draft Conservation Status and Needs of the Wolverine (Gulo gulo).