Wolverines are killed by vehicles at disproportionately high rates relative to their population size, making road mitigation a priority conservation and welfare issue.
Vehicle collisions cause traumatic injury and death, representing direct welfare harm. Wolverines that survive road strikes may suffer from internal injuries, fractures, or head trauma before dying or being found. At the population level, road mortality of this low-density obligate carnivore can destabilize local breeding populations. Infrastructure investment in crossing structures at identified hotspots has proven effective across multiple studies and represents an enduring welfare and conservation benefit.