Number and distribution of wolverines
The Finnish wolverine population has reached around 400 individuals and spread further south from its traditional range in Eastern and Northern Finland.
Wolverine, photo Kimmo Pöri
The Finnish wolverine population has reached around 400 individuals and spread further south from its traditional range in Eastern and Northern Finland.
No data on the size of a wolverine's territory have been collected in Finland. Data collected in the Scandinavian fell area indicate that females have territories of approx. 170 km2 and males 730 km2. Young wolverines have been known to travel hundreds of kilometres from the area in which they were born, but the average distances to a new territory in the Scandinavian data were only 51 km for males and 60 km for females.
Wolverine populations in almost every part of the country are growing
It is likely that in February 2020, there were 385 to 390 wolverines in Finland, of which 135 to 140 were living in the reindeer husbandry area. Compared to the early 1990s, the wolverine population has increased around ten-fold.
Distribution of wolverines
See the maps on the distribution of wolverines in Finland on Natural Resources Institute Finland’s (Luke) website (in Finnish).