Wolverines depend on access to ungulate carcasses in winter for survival — as prey populations decline and scavenging competition increases, winter welfare deteriorates.
Wolverine winter welfare is governed by energy balance in the harshest conditions. Animals that fail to maintain adequate fat reserves entering winter face starvation and exposure death. Juveniles dispersing in winter are at highest risk — they must find and secure carcasses in unfamiliar territory while competing with established adults. Cache disruption by competitors causes significant food insecurity; wolverines that lose cached food must immediately resume energetically costly foraging. Deep snow cover is not just a denning requirement — it is a food preservation system. Warming winters that reduce snow depth compromise both denning and food caching simultaneously, creating compounding welfare pressure during the most energetically demanding season.