The California Wolverine

Almost as legendary as Bigfoot is the California wolverine. We know that there was a population of wolverines in the high Sierra, and possibly one in the Trinity Alps, and reliable folks have claimed sightings of them every so often, but no one has offered any proof since the 1920's. So, whenever the wolverine was discussed in conversations about our fauna, the parenthetical (possibly extinct) was always appended. Wolverines are those sorts of creatures that you would like to think roam our high mountains, although I don't think anyone actually wants to meet one in the wild. Called "stink bears" in other parts of the world, wolverines are mustelids who "smell like skunks and have the strength of bears" as one book describes them. Sharp teeth, massive jaws, powerful paws with dagger-like claws, the wolverine is a formidable carnivore.

Well, thanks to modern technology, a photo of a wolverine was snapped in California, and not only was it in California, but it was in the Tahoe area, not the much more remote high Sierra to the south (around Mt. Whitney).