Jeff Traynor over at Furbearer Conservation put together an excellent piece on marten and fisher, their distributions and interactions with each other and the landscape, and how this relates to us as trappers. As a marten/fisher trapper myself, I'm always fascinated by where I see these guys out in the woods, and my observations here in northern Maine are fairly spot on with … [Read more...]
Study Looks to Shed Light on Wolverine Population (TBNewsWatch.com)
Source: Study looks to shed light on wolverine population in the Northwest (3 photos) - TBNewsWatch.com … [Read more...]
Proposal to Research the Muskrat Decline
Tim Hiller, biologist and trapper over at the Wildlife Ecology Institute is looking to take on one of the greatest research challenges faced by furbearer managers and trappers today: the long term decline in muskrat populations. We've discussed the muskrat decline here in the past, but nobody has come up with a solid answer yet. Here's a great writeup from Tim on the … [Read more...]
Thoughts on Trapping Bait (Live Free and Trap)
A while back, Jeff Traynor over at the "Live Free and Trap" blog wrote a thought provoking article on trapping bait. Citing a Wildlife Society study that looked at bait preferences of raccoon and skunk, he expressed some thoughts on bait that have bounced around in my head a great deal as well. How much of a difference does bait make? Are species-specific preferences … [Read more...]
Looking for answers: Biologists monitoring wolf movements near Duluth | Duluth News Tribune
Some would lead folks to believe that foothold traps are dangerous, cruel and inhumane. But how can this be the case if responsible wildlife biologists are using these methods to capture and release furbearers for research studies? Here's an interesting story on wolf research in Minnesota. Source: Looking for answers: Biologists monitoring wolf movements near Duluth | … [Read more...]
Improving Marten Habitat With Nest Boxes
The recovery success story of the wood duck in North America hinged on agencies and volunteers putting up countless nesting boxes to fill a crucial habitat need that was keeping duck densities lower than they could have otherwise been. It worked amazingly well for ducks. Could something similar work for the American marten - a popular furbearer whose numbers have declined in … [Read more...]
Alberta Trappers Assist Wolverine Research
Up in Alberta, local trappers are helping with an ambitious research project aimed at learning more about wolverines and their habitat. The Alberta Trappers Association approached researchers with the hopes of learning more about the elusive furbearers that play an important role on the bush trapline. Here's an excerpt. Jokinen has been involved with the wolverine project … [Read more...]
Bobcat Comeback in New Hampshire
Bobcats are making a comeback in New Hampshire. After their pronounced decline into the 1980's, the state placed protections on the once-common species that had then become rare. Two decades of protection apparently helped the cat population, which seems to have made a great comeback. In recent years, reports of bobcat sightings from all over the state seem to indicate that … [Read more...]