Fate of the wolverine under climate change in the contiguous United States

An ensemble of 21st century climate projections made using a state of the art global climate model are analyzed to explore likely changes in spring snow cover and temperature in present-day wolverine habitats in the contiguous United States (U.S.). Persistent spring snow cover is thought to be essential to the reproductive success of the wolverine. It is shown that there are likely to be significant reductions in spring snow cover in the present-day wolverine habitats, along with significant projected increases in local temperatures. Projected seasonal changes in snow-depth and temperature are discussed under various emissions scenarios, and implications for the continued survival of the wolverine in the contiguous U.S. are considered.