Today, we will be learning about the wolverine. Yes, the actual musty. Whoa! Whoa! Don't come back in, guys! It's the animal! He's not even black and yellow! Wow, I need to fire my advertisers.
If you live in the more frigid environments located in the Northern Hemisphere, you may have a furry, little beast to contend with. Indeed, the wolverine--that's the animal!--is quite literally the largest and most ferocious musty in the whole world. By the numbers, this beast can be as long as 42 inches from head to tail. They can weigh up to 55 pounds. Some have described them as little bears. Their fur color and body shape should account for this.
Like many of the larger musties--such as badgers--wolverines are built for open combat. They can run fairly quickly, they have powerful claws and jaws for killing, and their pelt is remarkably tough. On that latter note, these guys really do have some striking natural armor. If you are planning on fighting a wolverine--and why would you want to?--this creature actually does have a fair advantage. You'll figure this out when the blade of your hunting knife pops right off of the handle.
This creature is so powerful, that it is known for killing and devouring creatures that are much larger than itself. Let's look at some of it's bigger prey: caribou, various types of deer, sheep, moose, elk. All of these creatures are at least two times the size of the wolverine. Interestingly, the wolverine only goes after bigger prey when it can't find anything else. He generally wants something easy to kill and eat--such an a small animal caught in a trap. How very unsportsmanlike!
Wolverines are mis-characterized as gluttons. They do have a tendency to be killing and eating machines. They are very vicious and tend to attack anything that moves; however, this has nothing to do with gluttony. It had more to do with the environment they live in. Polar regions are known for having food shortages--especially when you are a small carnivore. Even when your belly is full, who knows when another animal will cross your path. Best kill them when you see them, and eat it when you get hungry again. The whole place is a refrigerator anyways.
Wolverines don't appear in fiction very often. They are generally cast as nameless aggressors in fairy tales, and even not very often. The "spirit" of the wolverine--that is what he represents as an animal--is more often used in representations of certain human characters. In the 1984 film "Red Dawn," a group of high school students calling themselves the Wolverines attempted to resist a Soviet Union invasion of the USA. In my life, this was really the first time I had heard the term wolverine used in fiction, and as this movie was a very powerful depiction, it stuck in my mind. These kids were very aggressive and fierce, so the name was appropriate.
Well, I suppose the comic book fans can come back in if they want. Wolverine is a well-known Marvel character from the series "X-Men." Honestly, the guy does not really look anything like a wolverine, but the aggression is there as well as the claws. I personally think the name works. He ranks under the title "I would never want to fight that," which the animal also holds. Very cool character! Glad he's on our side!
I don't really have any wolverine characters, but their personality certainly is not in question. Check it out though: You can actually find these musties in many of the Nordic countries of Europe. I'm thinking Wolverine Vikings now! Can you even imagine what that would be like?! There would be no stopping them! This is why I love imagination: sometimes, things just work out in wonderful ways.
The wolverine is definitely a force to be reckoned with. They are brutish and desperate killers. They will spare nothing in their path--even the weak and helpless. And if they ever get ahold of a sailing vessel, it will be plundering time!
Thank you for reading this blog. If you enjoyed it--and I sure hope you did--you can comment below or you can email me at tooie@tooiekangaroo.com. SNIKT!
In the wild, creatures tend to avoid a fair fight. So, it does not surprise me that the wolverine prefers an easy kill. Fanciful notions go right out the window when one's life is at stake.
ReplyDeleteYes, that's right. But when you have a creature this vicious, the imaginative mind sees gluttony. I don't mind this very much. It's what makes humans interesting.
Delete