A mysterious beast roaming a Montana campground has piqued the curiosity of thousands of Reddit users.
On a site dedicated to helping people identify animals spotted in the wild, one user, Gyrtohorea, shared three pictures of the very rare mammal.
He wrote: ‘This guy walked right up to our stove while camping in Montana, what could it be?’
The photos show a black furry animal with a bear-like face and a long furry tail running around near his campsite. In one shot, the animal looked directly into the camera as if posing.
Commentators quickly identified the animal as a wolverine, which was listed as an endangered species in 2023.
A mysterious beast roaming a Montana campground has piqued the curiosity of thousands of Reddit users
Commentators quickly identified the animal as a wolverine, which was listed as an endangered species in 2023.
Among the 1,600 comments, one user wrote: “Holy s***, that’s Wolverine. They are incredible in that people don’t see them – truly once in a lifetime. Congratulations!’
Another person joked “that’s Hugh Jackman” – a reference to iconic superhero Wolverine.
After all the interest in his location, the hiker later explained that he saw the wolverine on a trip with his wife to Cracker Lake in Glacier National Park in September 2017.
Describing this encounter, he said, “The first or second night the wind was absolutely whipping around the canyon we’re in and the air is thick with smoke and we’re quietly cooking our food in the designated food preparation area when my wife turns on her side and sees the guy about 10 feet from us.
“He reared up a bit on his hind legs as I stood up in surprise and then started to run away as I fumbled for the camera.”
Regina Domingo, a conservationist and wildlife expert, confirmed the species to Newsweek.
Domingo said wolverines are also known as carcajous. They may look like little bears, but they are technically large members of the weasel family.
The hiker later explained that he saw the wolverine while hiking with his wife at Cracker Lake in Glacier National Park in September 2017.
A Reddit poster wrote: ‘This guy walked right up to our stove while camping in Montana, what could it be?’
Wolverines look like small bears, but they are actually the largest member of the weasel family
They weigh about 40 pounds and are far from shy, animal reports fight wolves for food.
However, if left alone, they usually do no harm to humans.
The moderator of the site commented on the post: “Wolverines are not aggressive towards humans at all. Attacks are so incredibly rare that there has never been a single confirmed case of a wolverine attacking a human.
“Mother wolverines will run away from humans rather than defend their packs.”
The probability of tourists encountering wolverines in the wild is extremely low.
According to Conservation Northwest, fewer than 300 wolverines live in the lower 48 states. The global population is unknown.
Wolverines prefer cool temperatures and are usually found in states like Washington, Alaska, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and Oregon, according to AZ Animals. They also live in Canada and Russia.
They are circumpolar animals, meaning they live in mountains in northern regions around the world.
The wolverine frequented California’s Sierra Nevada and Utah, but trapping in the 1920s killed those populations.
This ultra-rare creature shares a name with Hugh Jackman’s iconic Wolverine character
Experts fear that climate change could be detrimental to the survival of wolverines.
According to the Defenders of Wildlife website, they have adapted to a “deep snow” environment.
The National Wildlife Federation also named the main reason why wolverines are endangered, climate change.
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