Winnipesaukee Forum - Pine Martin

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I just walked down my steps to my house and had to stop mid stride. Walking across my deck was a very large Mink, or Pine Martin, or whatever they are..
I have not seen this one before. It simply looked at me, and walked off the deck into the woods. Sorry no camera in hand and the front porch light was off. But wow, talk about startling me. At first I thought it was a large black squirrel, but after I got a look at it, I'm pretty sure it was a Pine Martin. It was very dark brown or black in color.
Good to know the wildlife is still around I guess. I'll have to warn my wife. I'll try to get a picture if it shows up again. Maybe I'll set my game camera again now that it is warmer.:D You can see why

http://www.nigelspencer.co.uk/wildli...artin-0940.jpg

That's a fisher cat

Lakesrider be careful not to let your cat or small dog out with that fisher cat around. It may have been on your deck only to grab a squirrel. However, when the opportunity presents itself they can take down small domestic animals as well. Nice picture.

I think a fisher is larger with no white spot.

http://www.animalpicturesarchive.com...tid=3&did=5932

Possible, but...

Quote:

Originally Posted by 20mile (Post 152646)

The photo is definitely of a Pine Marten; however, even with its favorite sustenance being Red Squirrels, it would be somewhat out of its normal range to be in New Hampshire—and this far south.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...arten_area.png

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Marten

Even a large mink is a pretty small critter: here are a few "picks" among New Hampshire's Weasel family:

http://www.nhfishandwildlife.com/weasels.php

Quote:

Originally Posted by 20mile (Post 152646)

Nice picture.

Nice lawn.

.....:look:

No it was definitely not a Fisher. I have seen a few of those around here and it was not that big. After searching all the photos, I believe it was a Pine Martin. Of course it was dark out as well. But I am pretty sure we don't have any dark colored squirrels running around in the dark. Most squirrels are back home after dusk.

Sorry again. Not my picture. That was off the internet, from a Google image search.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lakesrider (Post 152664)

Although most squirrels aren't around at night the flying squirrel is an exception. It is often trying to get food out of my feeder at 2-3am.

More then likely the animal you saw was a mink. It would be extremely unlikely that it was a pine martin. If you are any where near water then the habitat would be perfect for a mink. Good luck with the game camera!

I was staying overnight at the AMC Lonesome Lake hut, Cannon Mt, about three weeks ago and a Pine Martin was trying to get inside the main lodge while I was sitting in front of the wood stove. It was scratching at the windows and even reached over to rattle the door handle! It clearly saw me watching and was not overly concerned, though it did move away from the windows when I came over to look closer. Pretty unique experience.

At the time I wasn't sure what it was but in the morning the hut master told me it was a Pine Martin and has been hanging around all winter; it's very curious and not shy. He said they are actually making a come back in NH.

Good chance the critter you saw was a Pine Martin.

Cheers
Jeff

More likely a mink

The quote below is from the NH Fish & Wildlife web site weasel section.

http://www.nhfishandwildlife.com/weasels.php

While mink and pine martin are similar is size and both may sport the white bib, mink are much more common lakes region. We have a mink family living along the water bank over on Welch. Definitely not a fisher.

Quote:

The PINE MARTEN is a larger cousin, generally at least twice as long as a long-tailed weasel at about 20 to 25 inches long. Pine marten are on the state's threatened species list. They have been making a remarkable return on their own the last two decades. Currently, there is a small, but growing, population in northern Coos County. Pine marten have been described as golden brown, with a very distinctive yellow chin patch. Marten are an animal of the far north, preferring the spruce-fir thickets of the Great North Woods. In an ongoing New Hampshire study, nearly 30 pine marten were live-trapped and tagged in the northeastern side of the state near the Maine border. Marten, like the other weasels, prefer small prey mammals like voles, but also will eat fruits and nuts.

If you live near a stream, river or pond, MINK are some of your neighbors. Mink have a dark chestnut-brown colored pelt, only interrupted sometimes by a white chin patch. They are similar in size to the marten. Mink are semi-aquatic in nature, although they can and do range distances from water. Their typical home range is nearly a mile of a river corridor. Their aquatic dwelling shows up in their diet -- which is 31 percent fish, 25 percent frogs and 23 percent crayfish -- although small mammals are often part of their prey base, as well. Mink range widely over North America, except the desert southwest, and are common throughout New Hampshire. Like other weasels, they are rarely seen.

I'm still going with the Pine Martin. The thing I saw was at least 2 feet long if not longer. I would think that would negate the Weasel. The other thing is it did not have the shape of a weasel as far as it's head goes.

Weasel vs. Marten...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lakesrider (Post 152860)

This Weasel decided my shoes needed inspecting, and crossed a sundeck! That's a 3½-inch-wide aluminum boat part he's crossing. :eek2:

And also your weasel does not have the big bushy tail that the one I saw had. I would imagine a weasel type animal that goes in the water would want a thinner more stream lined tail.....Well maybe a Beaver doesn't.....:D