Deer Eating Marten

[HunterDave]

BC Trappers better manage those Marten numbers before they eat everything!

’They broke the scale': Obese martens devouring Haida Gwaii deer

Weight gain in martens linked to new diet; sightings reported of martens chasing deer and riding them

August 5, 2017

They're typically the size of a household cat, but an unusual number of Pacific marten in Haida Gwaii have started to sport some strangely plump bellies.

The reason for the weight gain is being linked to an appetite for the region's smaller Sitka blacktail deer.

"It's pretty hard to believe at first," said David Breault, a UNBC master's student in natural resources and environmental sciences, who's studying the portly predators.

"The number is growing of people who are reporting sightings of martens chasing full-grown deer and even riding them."

The marten — a larger version of a ferret — typically feasts on smaller creatures, such as woodpeckers, songbirds and squirrels.

The province conducted necropsies of a sample marten population in Haida Gwaii several years ago and found some to be in "beyond excellent condition."

"They broke the scale. There were several of them that they had to make a new designation for, which was obese," Breault said.

"Picture a rotund belly but still an elongated figure."

Competing for food

Trappers have reported that Haida Gwaii's marten population has gone up over the years, but there's been no study done yet to prove it, Breault said.

Martens can help keep some pesky rodents, like rats, under control. But their growth could also be putting more pressure on species at risk, Breault said.

The region's martens, for instance, have reportedly been gobbling up the sooty grouse, which is a main food source for the goshawk.

The number of ermine — another weasel-like mammal — in the region has also reportedly shrunk.

Breault hopes his research can answer some key questions about marten ecology for wildlife managers.

"If managers can veer the populations in the right directions, they can potentially put these species at risk out of the crosshairs of martens," he said.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...deer-1.4232618

[Reeves1]

Lived in Sandspit for 3 years....

A road foreman saw a Martin riding a Deer & chased it down to help the Deer.
This was in the mid 90s.

I've had Martin show up quickly to claim gut piles.

Find it hard to believe they can kill a Deer though ?
I'm thinking it's road kills etc the Martin are feasting on.
Maybe new born as well ? They are TINY !

Biggest problem I could see are the Raccoons there, on every Island. Way over populated with them !

[KegRiver]

Originally Posted by Reeves1

Lived in Sandspit for 3 years....

A road foreman saw a Martin riding a Deer & chased it down to help the Deer.
This was in the mid 90s.

I've had Martin show up quickly to claim gut piles.

Find it hard to believe they can kill a Deer though ?
I'm thinking it's road kills etc the Martin are feasting on.
Maybe new born as well ? They are TINY !

Biggest problem I could see are the Raccoons there, on every Island. Way over populated with them !

I find it hard to believe as well.

A Martens mouth is not big enough to get a good enough bit to do any serious damage to a Deer. They will eat from a Deer or Moose carcass but I think killing even a fawn would be impossible for such a small animal.

However, I wouldn't rule it out entirely, we don't know as much as we think we know about the world around us.

I knew a fellow who lived up here for over 30 years and still didn't know that such a thing as a Flying Squirrel existed or that there are woodpeckers almost as big as crows in the Province.
Actually a lot of people in the north have never seen or heard of a Pileated Woodpecker.

[HunterDave]

Sitka does only weigh 80 - 100 pounds. How do they get those marten off if they manage to get on top of them?

[Red Bullets]

Maybe the marten doesn't kill the deer but rides the deer while migrating to new territory.

[Reeves1]

Originally Posted by HunterDave

Sitka does only weigh 80 - 100 pounds. How do they get those marten off if they manage to get on top of them?

All excited when I moved there..... got two Does. I de-bone all but the front shoulder, as it fits perfect into a roast pan.
Both fit in the fridge freezer with a bit of room left.

[bill9044]

Maybe it's an animal world's Uber? I wonder how many bucks it costs?

[KegRiver]

Originally Posted by HunterDave

Sitka does only weigh 80 - 100 pounds. How do they get those marten off if they manage to get on top of them?

Rubbing against a tree ought to do it.

Have you ever seen a Deer get tangled in anything. I have, I was shocked at the intensity of the Deer's response. Intensity doesn't really cover it, fury doesn't really cover it. frantic doesn't really cover it.

Think, two tom cats hopped up on speed going at each other. That comes close.