Food-caching animals can gain nutritional advantages by buffering seasonality in food availability, especially during times of scarcity. The wolverine (Gulo gulo) is a facultative predator that occupies environments of low productivity. As an adaptation to fluctuating food availability, wolverines cache perishable food in snow, boulders, and bogs for short- and long-term storage. We studied caching behavior of 38 GPS-collared wolverines in four study areas in Scandinavia. By investigating clusters of GPS locations, we identified a total of 303 food caches from 17 male and 21 female wolverines. Wolverines cached food all year around, from both scavenging and predation events, and spaced their caches widely within their home range. Wolverines cached food items on average 1.1 km from the food source and made between 1 and 6 caches per source. Wolverines cached closer to the source when scavenging carcasses killed by other large carnivores; this might be a strategy to optimize food gain when under pressure of interspecific competition. When caching, wolverines selected for steep and rugged terrain in unproductive habitat types or in forest, indicating a preference for less-exposed sites that can provide cold storage and/or protection against pilferage. The observed year-round investment in caching by wolverines underlines the importance of food predictability for survival and reproductive success in this species. Increasing temperatures as a consequence of climate change may provide new challenges for wolverines by negatively affecting the preservation of cached food and by increasing competition from pilferers that benefit from a warmer climate. It is however still not fully understood which consequences this may have for the demography and behavior of the wolverine. Food caching is a behavioral strategy used by a wide range of animals to store food for future use. Choosing appropriate caching sites appears important for slowing down decomposition rates and minimizes competition. In this study, we demonstrate that the wolverine, an opportunistic predator and scavenger, utilizes available carrion to create caches all year around. By following wolverines with GPS collars, we registered that they carried food far away to cache it in secluded and cold places, which are often located on steep slopes or in forest. However, when scavenging other carnivores’ prey, they move food in shorter distances, possibly to be able to quickly return for more. The observed efficiency in wolverine caching behavior is likely vital for their survival and reproductive success in the harsh and highly seasonal environment in which they live.

中文翻译：

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冷藏还是防盗？斯堪的纳维亚狼獾 (Gulo gulo) 的食物缓存行为

食物缓存动物可以通过缓冲食物供应的季节性来获得营养优势，特别是在稀缺时期。狼獾 (Gulo gulo) 是一种兼性捕食者，占据生产力低下的环境。为了适应食物供应的波动，狼獾将易腐烂的食物存放在雪地、巨石和沼泽中，以便短期和长期储存。我们在斯堪的纳维亚的四个研究区域研究了 38 只戴 GPS 项圈的狼獾的缓存行为。通过调查 GPS 位置集群，我们从 17 只雄性狼獾和 21 只雌性狼獾中确定了总共 303 个食物储藏室。狼獾全年都会从食腐和捕食事件中储存食物，并将它们的藏匿处广泛分布在它们的栖息地内。狼獾平均在距离食物来源 1.1 公里的地方缓存食物，每个来源制作 1 到 6 个缓存。狼獾在清理被其他大型食肉动物杀死的尸体时会靠近源头；这可能是一种在种间竞争压力下优化食物增益的策略。在缓存时，狼獾会在非生产性栖息地类型或森林中选择陡峭和崎岖的地形，这表明它们更喜欢可以提供冷藏和/或防止盗窃的暴露较少的地点。观察到的狼獾对缓存的全年投资强调了食物可预测性对于该物种生存和繁殖成功的重要性。气候变化导致的气温升高可能会给狼獾带来新的挑战，因为它会对储藏食物的保存产生负面影响，并且会加剧来自气候变暖的窃贼的竞争。然而，目前仍未完全了解这可能对金刚狼的人口结构和行为产生哪些影响。食物缓存是多种动物用来储存食物以备将来使用的行为策略。选择合适的缓存站点对于减缓分解速度和最小化竞争似乎很重要。在这项研究中，我们证明了狼獾是一种机会主义的捕食者和清道夫，全年都利用可用的腐肉来制造藏匿处。通过追踪戴有 GPS 项圈的狼獾，我们发现它们将食物运到很远的地方，以便将其存放在僻静寒冷的地方，这些地方通常位于陡峭的斜坡或森林中。然而，在捕食其他食肉动物的猎物时，它们会在更短的距离内移动食物，以便能够快速返回获取更多食物。