Question for wolverine trappers?

Those of you trapping wolverines with 330’s, in boxes, buckets, or cubby’s do you get many rejections where a wolverine comes up to the 330 but won’t go into it? I have been running about 50% refusals, just curious, thx

Try this screen pen set, watch a video from trapping Inc. on you tube I tried it and he went straight in

close the top or they climb over

I had that same problem for at least ten years. Finally cleaned out all the old guys with foothold traps. After that, 330's started connecting. Still prefer the footholds

I also have far better luck with footholds. My very first was taken with a 330. Took 2 seasons of the trap getting pulled out, the gulo making his own entrance through the cubbie, or just walking by.
I finally got him, but he was the last in a 330.
I would rather catch them that way for several reasons, but my highest success rate is footholds.

Apparently they sometimes climb in but always go out through the trap.

That would make me consider setting it up so it is easy for them to climb in but not out. Might be a higher percentage set that way

I never had an luck with using buckets or milk crates. Trying some wooden boxes this winter.
Only luck I've had with 330's and wolverines so far was using a natural cubby.

Yep. My one and only 330 gulo was a natural cubbie, as well.

I had a many, many refusals with 330's in milk crates and never did catch one. I also tried large wooden boxes with the same results. I finally caught one in a cubby set and on a big pole set with beaver bait. I find it interesting that some people seem to do fine with milk crates while others do not. I guess that's why it's called trapping and not catching

A good wolverine trapper I know sets his boxes and piles brush on top.

The 2 best ways I have found is make the perfect wolf set and they will come. Or we use old metal 5 gal bucket that we found on trail seems to work pretty good . Never had much luck with plywood boxes.

Thanks for the reply’s, I’ve thought about trying the wire fence pen sets, I know some Canadian trappers do very well with them! Yeah, I know leg holds work better, l just like the clean fast kill of the Belisle 330’s. Will most likely make some leg hold sets.

New for this year I have some pans on some of the Belisle’s instead in wire triggers, also I drilled out with a long 1/8’’ drill bit and slid small twigs over the steel wire triggers, an old time Wolverine trapper told me that once, said the Wolverines don’t like that steel/cold steel on their face? Also made some longer boxes with a 330 on each end, making it look more open.

No Wolverine have been around yet this year, but I’ve caught two foxes in the 330’s, one with a pan and one with the sticks over the wire trigger, last year I only caught one fox in a 330-box set all year.
Seems like the foxes are not as spooky of the boxes with pans and sticks over the trigger! Guess I wait and see if I get less wolverine refusals.

These cage sets are the most productive sets that I’ve used. Still end up with refusals though. I had 3 Wolverine pass by sets on my last check.
I use 3-4 snares around the cage also and seem to pick them up in the snares while circling the cage. Usually still end up in the 330 while fighting the snare.
Also have had them jump over the cage. I don’t cover the top. Couple get caught backing out of the cage with the bait. Figure if they make it that deep in the set they will make a mistake.

More than likely the wolverines refusing to go for the bait are trap educated. You will need to employ more tactics and different sets in order to get the weary ones. When I have refusals at body grip sets, I set up snares and foot holds. I will usually get them within a couple of weeks. If you must, set up some dead falls for them if they continue to refuse your sets.

Thx for the Info!

Thx, snares are are next, have a couple Ram snares too!

Be super careful setting those rams !!

I catch everything in 330 with milk crates. Even got 2 wolves in milk crates last year. Milk crates are tough to come by up here though. Buti suppose wolverine have a lot more options to eat where you southern young fellers trap.
I got 2 Lynx in fence sets last year but did not get a wolverine. Im running amounts in line this year so I'll try one the community government had some old fence they said could take.

Thx! I will be super careful, I know those rams can be wicked!

The box sets work, I caught three wolverine in them last year, 2 males, one 39.5 pounds and another 36 pounder, and a 19 pound female, just running about 50% refusals or more!

One more thing on wolverine passing up you milk crates. I use a couple types of bait in the same box. As a wolverine can be fussy. So maybe tainted bear meat, fish and Muskrat in the same box. Make sure he gets what he is looking for that day. Also lure on a ball of hide just to keep his attention and scraps or dog feed on the ground make sure he spends some time in the area. Turn them Old Golu eyes to eating and you will do good.

Great advise! Thanks!

I'm at the extreme end of wolverine habitat so we don't get large catches. My buddy who use to live in Haines Junction Yukon. He said they get big catches of wolverine there. He said they get refusals so to reduce them they use deadfall triggers.

They run a wire through the back of the milk crates then to the bait. The other end goes to a hole where the trigger wires use to be. So when the wolverine pulls on the bait he triggers the 330. He showed me how but I m scared to stick me arm through the 330 like he did
My buddy don't trap no more because his wife has a Yukon Vet showing Animal Planet.

One more thing I like to raise the crate a little off the ground so the wolverine does not have to bend down.

Has anyone got a picture of your milk crate set they could share?
Thanks

I don't catch many wolverine, usually 1-3 a year, but I use mostly footholds due to refusals on box/bucket sets. I tried some crate's early on and didn't have much luck. Made some boxes out of weathered plywood and covered them with spruce boughs to make them look more natural and have caught a couple younger ones, and one mature adult, but he was thin and hungry looking. I still have boxes out just for coverage and to hedge against weather issues, but they are not very productive. I've had them check out and pass by a 330 box and end up in a foothold a couple hundred yards down the trail. As others have said I would imagine its related to educated critters, the more remote you are crates/boxes probably work fine.

I am not convinced that avoidance is caused by having been 'educated' previously.

I have never trapped in an area where wolverines were likely to have encountered another trapper. Even though they can have very large home ranges and travel a heck of a distance looking for love, I believe that the average wolverine is pretty much a homebody as long as he can find groceries. Especially the females.

I can recall when Gulo was the area biologist here. He was having good luck catching wolverine in bucket sets. He was trapping mostly with the airplane but still was at least a hundred miles from my line. The difference , I believe, is that the individual animals he was trapping had encountered man-made things before. The individual animals in my area had not.

I believe that the critters closer to civilization become more familiar and at ease with things that are, or look to be, out of place.

A bucket or a milk crate are not things a wolverine normally encounters in his lifetime...........unless they live closer to a community.

I also believe that mama wolverine teaches her kits travel routes through the country and also things to avoid..........like a bucket or a box. That's why I think my luck with buckets changed after I eliminated the older cohort in the population, with footholds.

I also started leaving buckets inverted over a stump during the summer. Maybe the critters became habituated to seeing them and thus lowered their avoidance behavior.

Look how common it is for wolverines to circle a set. That isn't 'hunting' behavior, it is caution. If something appears natural, I think their alert system is at a lower level. I also believe that if you can focus their attention higher than their normal line of sight, it gives you an advantage.......particularly with footholds.

Many of us remember Piper9er on here. He used mostly 330's in buckets and crates but they were elevated on a couple of leaning poles. I believe that was mostly due to wind and drifting snow on his line but I think it also aided the animal's ability to see the bait without "scrunching " down a bit.

Who knows ? That's what makes these guys such an interesting animal to pursue

Just my 2 'scents'

This thread brings back fond memories. The days when the WT+L section of Tman was most active. So many participating and offering their experience. For those who are interested, go to the archive section ie - wilderness trapping and living archives. All of the topics offer a wealth of information. There are several sections that pertain to Wolverine. The buckets that White referenced are shown in the archive thread titled - Wolverine thread archive by trapper Joe. The pics were posted by fisherman 222.
Bucket sets don’t seem to work for some, but my experience was positive. As you can see, the elevated sets are positioned at a downward angle. In theory, the animal has all four legs occupied as it sticks it’s head into the bucket. A loud skunk call always helped draw them in. Consistent behind the neck catch. Often, you would get them on their first curcuit, other times months later. But who really knows, it could be a new animal entering the area.
All sorts of methods work, but the nice part is the drama of foot holds is avoided.

I agree. And the drama is real!

I agree that footholds cause far less avoidance, but are higher maintenance in freeze/ thaw that I trap in. Buckets with 330’s angled slightly downward are almost weather proof and milk crates with a good covering of hemlock boughs prove almost equal. I just have not had a single wolverine make the final step into a 330 with a bucket or crate. It seems like what White mentioned, in that our wolverine invariably end up running the coastal beaches and encounter all sorts of flotsam along that fringe. Plastics and rubber are all over.

My sets that produce with 330’s are ones that use a natural feature to craft a cubby from. Minimal additions are needed, mostly just to stabilize and somewhat fence the sides of the trap.

I've had luck with buckets and boxes or crates. However I've gone to mostly this type of set due to restrictions where I trap. The bait is covered to help it last longer when it warms up and keeps the birds out. I've had them circle this and leave too.

Funny as I have caught many in lynx sets with completely exposed traps, no bait, and just a wing with or without lure
. The good thing about those has been that I use mainly Jump traps for cats, and the under spring keeps them from chewing of their frozen toes and pulling out.

nice shed and wonderful pattern on that animal

I had poor luck with V-14 jumps. Several pull-outs, and a couple toes.
Since switching to NO BS CANINE EXTREMES, that Kendal made with no off-sets, for MadMike, and I, zero loss.
I will say, those traps have held everything, including wolves, for MM.

Cytex: Sounds like you are trapping lazy not putting the effort in to make the box area attractive to to the wolverine to mill about and work the area. But if you catch him further down the line it's all good.

That is a sweat set Nooksack I would love to come on a Golu hung up like that.

Yes I too had several V-14's completely disassembled by wolverines.
But I have never lost one from the MB-750's . In fact I have never lost anything from an MB-750.

That is a nice set Nook. I prefer to use a snare rather than the 330 in that situation. That drop off of the bank is a great place

Wow what a shed. Wouldn't surprise me if that a 70"+ moose.

Thanks for all the great info! Merry Christmas to all!

Av, I definitely don't use jumps for wolverine. I don't set any footholds for them. I used 650's for a while but lost one out of those also.

What's your loop and height with a snare White?

I don't know if that bull would have gone 70" close probably. I found the other side two weeks later less than a mile away.

White, interesting on the 14’s being defeated like that. I took a good number of them using the under sprung 14OV’s. Perhaps the temperature embrittlement of the cast jaws?
Here is one that a #%@&* bear tore my caught Gulo from. I never had a broken trap with the type.
As The Viking said, Kendall’s No BS Extremes are amazing. They have held some good sized wolves and easily handle the wolverine.

Anyways footholds for me, all day with setting for wolverine. Avoidance is rare, but they are usually back very soon.

I don't have anything against footholds for wolverine. I just don't use them much, and None the last two years. There's not a huge population around me, so I don't hit them hard, and often pull my sets before the end of the season.

Notice the missing dog on MM's bent to heck V-14. Every wolverine I lost in one of those traps took the dog with it. Even the one that left me it's toe.

Yeah, they use them as toothpicks, while you are gone. Whack them how you want to. In a 330/280 likely game over quick. Not so good in SEAK coastal conditions. Keep them hung up and they can rearrange things beyond belief.

Isn't that the truth.

Yep a good 65" I'm sure. Regardless it's a big mature moose.

I don't know if that bull would have gone 70" close probably. I found the other side two weeks later less than a mile away.

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Boy I know of several native cultural carvers that would drool over that match set to get their hands and knives on.
But that should be left for another thread to be opened up
too easy to sidetrack

Nook> On a pole I usually set a loop about 8" and 8" off the pole. Lower if the pole is steeply angled. The most important thing is to be certain the gulo can't get his feet on the ground. They will spin until they break the cable





Is that a Paws-i-trip pan on Mike's trap ? I have a couple CDR 750's with those and the dog never survives an encounter with wolf or wolverine. Nice trap but that dog is a weak point.

The V-14's that I had were all cast jaws and about 1920's vintage. I suppose the cold and age could have been the problem but I have some NH4's, 48's that are similar age with no issues

Is that a Paws-i-trip pan on Mike's trap ? I have a couple CDR 750's with those and the dog never survives an encounter with wolf or wolverine. Nice trap but that dog is a weak point.

The V-14's that I had were all cast jaws and about 1920's vintage. I suppose the cold and age could have been the problem but I have some NH4's, 48's that are similar age with no issues


White, yes it was a Paws-i-trip dog. I am not sure if bear ate it or if the wolverine had already removed the dog before the bear arrived.

The 1 wolverine I held in a V-14, and the 3 I lost, all took the original dog with them. All cast jaw traps.
The black bear I caught, (and held 3 times!), also ate the dog, each time.

Do you guys get any incidental wolverines in your wolf snares.
The ones caught here are incidentals and mostly in wolf or lynx snares at jackpots.No season here for them yet.They are steadily increasing their range from the north and west.

I've caught two in wolf snares that were both blown in with snow and one in a lynx trail snare that was too small to hold him, he was caught a month and a bit later in a 330 milk crate set.

I had one in a wolf snare. Can't imagine how it happened. An 18 inch loop and it had him right around the throat. Twisted until all feet were off the snow.

I have caught 2 in wolf snares where i set on a trail a pack had made hoping they would follow the same path. One was after a snow, so the bottom of the loop was probably pretty close to the snow level. The other I have no idea how that happened, 16" loop, same situation setting on a wolf trail but with very little snow. Both were caught around the middle, I suspected they lunged through the snare loop but tripped it with the hind legs. I think they follow the wolves quite a bit hoping to find a kill site to scavenge. I used some V-14 when I was starting because that's all I had, but I did hold 3 wolverine in them. Never lost one, but the dog and pans were all gone. I don't use them anymore.

Yes, untill I went to a spacious double end cubby setup of16-20” wide X 36-40” Length with a 280 or 330 BG trap at each end. My experience has been if a wolverine can see its way out the back end of a space, and can easily turn around within it, they are far less hesitant to enter and less apt to tear the cubby apart. In my opinion many wolverine feel crowded in a normal cubby set up with no escape route, thus they avoid them or tear them apart to safely get at the bait with an escape route available. In essence many wolverine do not like bing crowed.

Good info guys, got to catch up with one of those critters some day.

That is an awesome set of sheds, Todd!

I'm liking the open ended double boxes that I have been trying.
This one went straight into the box, didn't even circle the set. I must have had the trigger wires set too far apart and
this was a smaller wolverine. It got through the first 330, into the box and got caught by back leg. Then started chewing on the
box until it finally poked its head into the 330 on the other end. Fresh caught, still flexible enough I could fish it through the box.

Nice. You got him. I also like the double end box. Long ago I got to watch one work the set from far away. She came up to the spruce pole box, looked into one end, then went to the other end and put her head in.

Sweet! I put out some double opened ended boxes, have to wait and see how they work!

I have a friend who went to the MB 12 x 16 with plywood box and his refusal rate went down, plus he has gotten a few lynx with them. Makes sense, bigger opening

I use all bucket sets with a 330, never had a refusal but I trap a remote area so the wolverine are not educated.