Did you know that fishers were once a very rare furbearer in the state of Minnesota? Here's a clip from an old Minnesota newspaper back in 1969: 40 years ago (1969) The long arm of chance reached into the life of Pine River trapper Walter Norman recently. He made trapper's dream of catching what appeared to be a 15-pound black weasel, but it was a rare fisher, not often seen … [Read more...]
Logging, Lynx and Marten: How Forest Practices Can Influence Furbearer Numbers
In a state almost completely covered with trees, forest harvest practices in Maine can seriously influence populations of many of the furbearers that call the Maine woods home. Two such furbearers, the American marten and Canada lynx, depend on certain forest types for their survival. Lynx need 20-40 year-old successional forest that holds plenty of snowshoe hares (their main … [Read more...]
Missouri Lifts Restrictions on Otter Trapping
For the first time in recent history, the state of Missouri has lifted harvest level restrictions on the river otter, marking a high point in one of the most successful conservation stories in the United States. Just a few decades ago, Missouri's otter population was considered almost nonexistent, with only an estimated few dozen otters left in isolated locations. The plight … [Read more...]
The River Otter
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation has put together an excellent summary of information on the North American river otter, a species pursued by trappers in many U.S. states. The article was recently published in a Stueben County, New York newspaper. Click here to read the article. It doesn't get into otter trapping, but does give some good background … [Read more...]