Conservation Success in South-West England
Conservationists report that pine martens are "doing well" following their reintroduction to areas of south-west England.
Since autumn 2024, dozens of these mammals, which are related to weasels, have been released into undisclosed locations across Dartmoor and Exmoor as part of the Devon Wildlife Trust's Two Moors Pine Marten project.
Breeding Confirmed After More Than a Century
In July, it was confirmed that the animals, which had vanished from the region over 100 years ago due to hunting and trapping, had successfully bred in the wild.
Project lead Tracey Hamston expressed optimism about the future of the species in the area.
"The births were the 'news we were waiting for' and we are hopeful more young pine martens, called kits, will be spotted soon."
"This year's kits should be being born on both Dartmoor and Exmoor around now."
"We hope to see evidence of this on our cameras when the kits become more active in May and June."
Tracking and Movement Insights
Hamston explained that the project initially tracked the released pine martens using collars for the first six months, after which remote cameras took over monitoring duties.
The tracking data revealed that some pine martens, which are about the size of a small cat, had traveled more than 20 miles (32 km) from their release sites.
"It's been amazing to see where the pine martens have travelled since their release.
We can see that they've been thoroughly exploring the landscape before settling into their new woodland homes."
Community Involvement Encouraged
The project team has encouraged the public to report any pine marten sightings to assist with ongoing tracking efforts.
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