Emergence of the fisher is a development to behold
We have a relatively new neighbor, and its arrival signals the continuation of a trend. You see, the populations of many species of wildlife is increasing.
Black bear, moose, and bobcats are all benefactors of this new environmental trend, which also includes hunters obeying the hunting regulations, trappers doing the same, and environmental conditions being obeyed be just about everyone.
The latest “new” critter I am talking about is the fisher. The first one I saw was chasing a red squirrel.
It was right over my head at the time, and I wished it were 30 minutes before or after my sighting it because my primary job at the time was watching four duck hunters as they shot an overlimit of wood ducks on that pretty little marsh. Oh well.
The fisher, often erroneously called a “fisher cat,” is a black or dark brown forest dwelling member of the weasel and wolverine family. It looks somewhat like a marten or mink, but it is much larger in size. The male (8-15 pounds) is about twice the size of the female ( 5-9 pounds).
A somewhat unique feature that fishers have is that they possess relatively large paws with semi-retractable claws and the hind feet can be rotated 180 degrees which gives them exceptional climbing ability in trees. A old Adirondack trapper, E. J. Dailey, told me he once saw one catch a squirrel running through the tree canopy. They also den in tree cavities, usually very high.
They can be a very savage animal and are opportunists that take many animals and birds. They will dine on carrion and will eat seeds and fruits when available. In the Adirondacks, their food staple is snowshoe rabbits, squirrels and porcupines. Yes porcupine; they are the only animal that will take on a porkie and win.
They are so fast that they can get to the porkie's head (where there are no quills) and slowly weaken him until he gets to a point where they can roll him over enough to hit his belly which is also void of quills.
Another unique feature about this animal is its reproduction method. Fishers are solitary animals with the exception mating season (the male doesn't help with the raising of the young). Mating takes place in March and early April but there is delayed implantation and the actual birthing doesn't take place until mid-February the following year.
The fur presently is worth between $30 and $60. Back in the early 1900s, their fur was worth up to $100 and because of this and heavy logging operations (habitat lost) the fisher became a very rare animal only being found in the Adirondacks.
By 1934 the fisher was given complete protection until the early 1960s when again a trapping season was opened in the Adirondacks. Later, some Adirondack fishers were live trapped and reintroduced into the Catskill mountains of N.Y.
In recent years, this animal has spread across the state and has learned to adapt to farm land and now there there is a relatively short fall trapping season for them in many areas in our Southern Tier. Surprisingly their numbers in the Adirondacks have reportedly been declining.
Do we have any in our area? These animals are are great roamers and they have been moving into our area. This last month, two have been reported killed on roads in Niagara County and I have heard of others being caught on deer hunter trail cameras. Other road kills and sightings of them have been being reported for a few years now in our area.
They have learned to adapt to farm land and new food sources. The fisher is getting a reputation for raiding chicken coops now and they also like to eat cats. Now I like cats that are kept under control but have no love for those that are allowed to roam uncontrolled (actually a people problem) as they are great destroyers of birds, rabbits and other smaller mammals killing many times just for the “sport” of it.
Now I can see that an animal that has no trouble killing a porcupine or squirrel in the trees would not have much trouble getting a cat. So maybe the fisher will help us with the feral cat problems!
This character is very fast, aggressive and bold so caution is advised if you should encounter one. I think they will become a problem to some extent in our area and am looking for a trapping season to be set for them in the not too far future, as they have done elsewhere in the Southern Tier.
Because they are a predator that is very agile in trees I have concerns about them possibly preying on some of our nesting birds especially our National Symbol - the Bald Eagle. Hopefully trappers will be able to kept their numbers in check.
Len Lisenbee is the Daily Messenger’s Outdoor Writer. Contact him at lisenbee@ frontiernet.net.
