Wisconsin conservation biologists hope a network of trail cameras in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest can play a role in helping to restore populations of the American marten, an elusive member of the weasel family and the only state-endangered mammal.
Starting in December 2018, biologists began deploying cost-effective trail cameras in the National Forest among 120 different sites to capture photos of the martens. A special platform mounted on a tree in front of a camera encourages martens to reach for a bait, clearly exposing for the camera the unique pattern of yellowish-orange fur on the animal's throat and chest.
DNR conservation biologist Skyler Vold says the cameras will help collect information on the rare and elusive animal..
"..We're looking to get a better population estimate of the marten population in the Nicolet National Forest..."
The recent snowfall is welcomed by American martens, which tunnel under the snow in search of prey. Martens need deep snow to find food. Vold says habitat loss also caused the population declines...
"'It was a combination of over-trapping and habitat destruction. We've gotten much better with our habitat management. They like old-growth habitat, those older trees, hemlocks and yellow birch. They need a lot of course, woody debris and leaving trees that have fallen in the forest because they like to forage around those fallen trees...."
Biologists hope to track individual martens so they can generate more reliable estimates of population size and annual survival. The biologists also hope the trail cameras can reveal more about the marten's habits so the DNR and other conservation partners can refine strategies for recovering the species.
American martens, small mammals weighing 1 to 3 pounds and measuring 1to 2 feet in length, with about one third of that length its long bushy tail, were historically abundant and widely-distributed in northern Wisconsin before European settlement.
