OT: Wolverines, the animal variant, being tasked with saving lives
Apparently, wolverines are more than mere efficient killing machines.
In Alaska, search and rescue teams are attempting to train wolverines to search for and discover victims of avalanches. Folks at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, who traditionally use dogs for such efforts, have found that the far more powerful nose of a wolverine is useful for sniffing out persons covered under several feet of snow and debris.
The article reads, in part:
Wolverines, Miller says, were born to do this; smelling a creature 20 feet below the snow is instinctive for them. They’re known to run along avalanche lines searching for dinner among the animals buried deep in the slide. The squat, bear-like member of the weasel family is famed for powering up difficult terrain that would require professional climbing equipment for humans... “Anything you can train a dog to do, you can train a wolverine to do, five times quicker,” Miller says.
Who knew?
The challenge, of course, is whether wolverines can be trained to discover an avalanche victim without, you know, mauling him to death.
April 11th, 2016 at 11:11 AM ^
April 11th, 2016 at 11:16 AM ^
April 11th, 2016 at 11:22 AM ^
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April 11th, 2016 at 12:06 PM ^
Just Pratt.
Harbaugh is way ahead of those guys in Alaska
April 11th, 2016 at 11:25 AM ^
they're searching for are wearing OSU/MSU jackets.
April 11th, 2016 at 11:33 AM ^
Hopefully....these are the ones found by the wolverine
April 11th, 2016 at 11:33 AM ^
Wolverine : rescue animal :: arsonist : firefighter
April 11th, 2016 at 11:36 AM ^
The NCAA will put an end to this effective immediately.
April 11th, 2016 at 11:55 AM ^
April 11th, 2016 at 11:58 AM ^
April 11th, 2016 at 12:18 PM ^
a while back.
April 11th, 2016 at 12:40 PM ^
April 11th, 2016 at 12:56 PM ^
I didn't see it, so it didn't happen.
April 11th, 2016 at 12:31 PM ^
I Hear the OSU fans have to run back to Ohio.