Pine marten

When: Year round

Scientific name: Martes martes

Gaelic name: Crannchu na coille (little dog of the woods!)

Length: body 45cm plus 25cm tail

Weight: 900g - 1.7kg

Where: Occasional sightings in woodland areas of the Inner Forth

When: Mainly nocturnal, but sometimes seen during the day if undisturbed

'The marten cat, long-shagged, of courage good,

Of weasel shape, a dweller of the wood,

With badger hair, long-shagged, and darting eyes,

And lower than the common cat in size,

Small head, and running on the stoop

Snuffing the ground, and hind-parts shouldered up...'

John Clare, extract from 'The Marten' written 1835-7)

It's hard to improve on poet John Clare's description of a pine marten - as you will see for yourself if you are lucky enough to spot one in the Inner Forth area. Common in Clare's day, they are at present a rare and special sight around here. A mix of habitat loss and gamekeeper persectution in the 19th century decimated their numbers, leaving only a small population in the Highlands of Scotland, away from the shooting estates. Their fur was also very popular, and apparently was 'much used for the linings of the gowns for magistrates'.

But recently the pine marten has been making something of a comeback. A combination of legal protection through the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981, and a recovery programme led by the Vincent Wildlife Trust, has helped to speed their spread. They can now be found almost as far south as Glasgow, as well as in the south west of the country, and at the speed they are moving they may soon be taking up residence around there too!

These beautiful animals, related to weasels, stoats, otters and badgers, are real characters. Although they are naturally nocturnal they can be tempted to show themselves during the day if the reward is a tempting morsel of peanut butter - or even better - fruit cake! Their main food is rodents and rabbits, but they do have sweet tooth and wild autumn fruit also plays a big part in their diet. It may even be that their taste for small mammals is helping in the fight to control the introduced grey squirrels in favour of our native reds. It seems the heavier greys can't run to the ends of the tree branches to put themselves out of reach of the pursuing pine martens, as the lighter reds do, and are therefore more easily caught. There's evidence that red squirrels are doing much better in areas that pine martens have recolonised.

If you'd like to find out more about pine martens visit the Vincent Wildlife Trust's website at http://www.pine-marten-recovery-project.org.uk/our-work/species-profile