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Fisher - MARTES PENNANTI
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
The Name "Fisher": "Fisher" is unknown, since fish do not make up a large part of this marten's diet.
Location: Canada and the northern United States.
Habitat: Terrestrial. Coniferous forest.
Description: The dense, soft coat is glossy dark brown, with the front parts grayish and the legs and tail darker in color. The body is slender, but more bulky than that of the pine marten. There are 38 teeth, including four premolars on each side. The length of the head and body is 24 to 32 inches, with the tail adding 14 to 16 inches. The weight is seven to twelve pounds, although the female is somewhat smaller and considerably lighter.
Behavior: Like the other martens the fisher is aggressive. It is solitary, principally nocturnal, and shelters in tree hollows. Its diet is totally carnivorous and consists mainly of rodents. Its preferred prey is the Canadian porcupine, which it kills by flipping it over on its back and attacking the belly where there are no protective quills. The fisher has also been known to kill small deer, especially in deep snow. It is arboreal, but is equally agile on the ground.
Reproduction: Fishers exhibit delayed implantation of ten or eleven months. One to five young are born in the spring, and may nurse until they are four months old. They become completely independent shortly thereafter.
Note: Because of the value of its fur, this species has been more or less wiped out in many parts of its range.
Go to the Carnivore Page to learn more about all the meat-eating animals.
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