Wolverines (Gulo gulo) in the conterminous United States have experienced range contraction, are uncommon, and have been designated as warranted for protection under the United States Endangered Species Act. Data from the southern edge of the wolverine's circumpolar distribution is sparse, and development of effective conservation strategies would benefit from a more complete understanding of the species' ecology. We captured and radio‐monitored 30 wolverines in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), tested for seasonal habitat selection by elevation band, and examined a suite of spatial characteristics to clarify our understanding of the wolverine's niche. Wolverines in GYE selected for areas >2,600 m latitude‐adjusted elevation (LAE; n = 2,257 wolverine locations [12 F, 6 M]). Wolverines avoided areas <2,150 m LAE, including during winter when the vast majority of ungulates are pushed to these elevations by deep snow. Wolverine home ranges were large relative to body size, averaging 303 km2 for adult females and 797 km2 for adult males (n = 13 [8 F, 5 M] and 33 wolverine‐years). Resident adults fit with Global Positioning System (GPS) collars used an area >75% the size of their multi‐year home range in an average of 32 days (n = 7 [5 F, 2 M]). Average movement rates of 1.3 km/2‐hr indicated that both sexes move distances equivalent to the diameter of their home range every 2 days or the circumference of their home range in <1 week (n = 1,329 2‐hr movements, n = 12 individuals [7 F, 5 M]). This capability for movement, the short time‐frame over which home ranges were developed, and a lack of home range overlap by same sex adults (${\bar {x}} = 2.1\%\;{\rm overlap}$, 90% CI = 0.0–4.8%, n = 22 pairs) suggested territoriality. We estimated wolverine density to be 3.5/1,000 km2 of area >2,150 m LAE (95% CI = 2.8–9.6). Dispersal movements extended to at least 170 km for both sexes (n = 5 F, 2 M). At the southern edge of distribution, where suitable and unsuitable conditions exist in close proximity, wolverines selected high‐elevation areas near alpine tree‐line where a mix of forest, meadow, and boulder fields were present, deep snow‐cover existed during winter, and low temperatures near freezing can occur throughout the year. Persistence in these areas where the growing season is brief requires large home ranges that are regularly patrolled, a social system that provides exclusive access to resources, and low densities. These characteristics, along with low reproductive rates, are prevalent throughout the species range, indicating that wolverines are specialists at exploiting a cold, unproductive niche where interspecific competition is limited. The vulnerability inherent in occupying this unproductive niche was likely influential in previous declines within the conterminous United States and will remain a factor as wolverines encounter modern human influences. Conserving wolverines in the conterminous United States will require collaborative management over a large geographic scale. © 2011 The Wildlife Society.

The relationship of wolverines (Gulo gulo) to persistent spring snow (PSS) may be obligate at the den‐site scale but this relationship has yet to be examined at this scale. Our objective was to detect snow at the den‐site scale in late May using low‐altitude aerial photography in wolverine denning habitat both in the Rocky Mountains of western United States and northwestern Alaska, USA. In the Rocky Mountains, we detected snow on 31 May 2016 in low to heavy categories in 82% of 40 transect segments flown through home ranges of 4 reproductive female wolverines that had denned in Idaho and Montana, USA, prior to our study. In the Alaska study area, we detected snow on 29 May 2016 at 4 den sites of reproductive female wolverines that denned in 2016. By then, snow remained only in occasional, widely scattered patches. Remnant snowdrifts remained at all 4 den sites. High‐latitude tundra habitats in Alaska may lose PSS sooner than montane habitats at the southern extent of wolverine distribution. To manage wolverines and their habitat and incorporate PSS in models of future wolverine habitat, we must understand the relationship of wolverines to snow and measure PSS at an appropriate resolution and scale that is biologically meaningful for the species. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.

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We created a cDNA library from feeding, female Ixodes scapularis ticks and screened the library with a subtracted probe to eliminate most genes common to feeding female and mating male I. scapularis ticks. Four unique genes were identified in this screen. One gene, Is 9, (represented by 16 cDNAs) was more highly expressed in female ticks. This gene encodes a putative glycine-rich protein, which matched a number of glycine-rich proteins including attachment cement proteins from Rhipicephalus appendiculatus. A second gene, Is 10 (represented by one cDNA) was also more highly expressed in female ticks, but did not match any other sequences in the GenBank database. The third gene, Is 11 (represented by one cDNA) was very similar to Drosophila sp. hsp68 and hsp70 genes and was expressed about equally in male and female ticks. The fourth gene, Is 12 (represented by two cDNAs) was also about equally expressed in male and female ticks, and was similar to a salivary gland gene from Ixodes ricinis. This gene also showed limited similarity to some cuticle genes from insects.

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