Pine Marten
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"I'm sort of a weasel but I'm a pine marten!"
Female
103 years old
WASHINGTON, Washington DC
United States
Last Login:
1/8/2006
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http://www.myspace.com/pinemarten |
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Pine Marten's Details
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| Status: | Single | | Zodiac Sign: | Aries |
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Pine Marten is in your extended network
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Pine Marten's Blurbs |
About me:
Very few Newfoundlanders have ever seen a pine marten, probably because there are very few marten left to be seen. Listed as threatened in 1986, it is estimated that approximately 300 remain on the Island .
About the size of a small housecat, the marten has a long, slender body, a small head with a short, pointed muzzle, large, rounded ears and dark brown eyes. Its bushy tail is about half the length of its body. Dark brown fur, a paler head and a yellowish-orange patch on the throat and chest distinguishes the marten from others in the mink/weasel family. In summer the marten's coat becomes lighter as it sheds its winter fur. New fur growth begins in late summer and is completed by late October. Its legs are short, but the feet are large and furred complete with sharp claws which help the marten scale trees. Males have an average length of 50 to 63 cm (20 to 25 in.) including the tail and an average weight of about 1100 g. (2.4 lb.). Females average 46 to 56 cm (18 to 22 in.) in total length with an average weight of 750 g (1.6 lb.).
The marten is related to a group of animals known as the Mustelid family which includes otter, skunk, mink and weasel. Both sexes have two types of scent glands: the anal gland, located under the tail, and the abdominal gland, found under the skin of the belly. Marten will drag their bellies over logs and vegetation using the abdominal gland to mark their territories.
Newfoundland pine marten are a unique subspecies. Native to the Island, they have probably resided here since the last glaciation over 10,000 years ago. Island isolation has resulted in a Newfoundland race not found anywhere else in the world.
Marten reach adult size at about three and one half months of age. Females are almost three years old before they have their first litter. Generally loners, they come together only briefly during the mid-summer breeding season, often mating with several partners. Birth occurs 220-276 days after fertilization. For most of that time, the egg is in a resting state, known as delayed implantation. The active pregnancy lasts only 27 days.
The kits are born in March or April, weigh approximately one ounce and are blind, deaf and naked for the first two to three weeks. The mother's den usually consists of an underground crevice or cavity. Sometimes, marten will take over a squirrel's nest or even use a woodpecker's nest in an old snag tree.
Marten prefer to live in undisturbed mature coniferous or mixed forest, with large evergreens and scattered birch and other hardwood trees. Preferring thick shady woods with a dense canopy, they usually avoid large openings or clearings. For denning and nesting sites, marten use hollow trees, stumps and logs.
In its first year, a young marten may travel long distances searching for a place to call its own. Once found, the established territory is defended against other marten. In good habitat, when food is plentiful and easily found, a female may have a territory approximately three to five sq. km., while a male may have an area double that of females.
Marten are carnivores, or meat-eaters, whose main foods are small animals such as meadow voles, shrews, snowshoe hare, red squirrel and birds. They will also feed on berries, bird eggs, insects and carrion when available. Primarily night hunters, they spend much of the day resting in trees or dens. They do most of their hunting on the ground, but are agile tree climbers.
Marten stay active all winter. They hunt small mammals under the snow by using natural crevices around stumps or fallen trees. When the forest is clear-cut, the snow layers change and the natural avenues to their winter food sources are eliminated. There are probably only about three hundred of these animals left in their natural habitat, help to save this little guy.
Thank you! Source: http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/snp/AnimalCare/EndSpecies/PineMarten/PineMarten.htm..6 - This website will tell you more about this animal and how to save it.
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Who I'd like to meet:
A viking or some sort of other norse character.
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| Pine Marten's Friend Space (Top 5) |
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Pine Marten has 6 friends.
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