Another capture of a twosome up at the larch wood SpyCam. Until about 1800, the pine marten was widespread throughout Britain, but today it is confined mainly to remote, forested areas in the north and west of Scotland, with a few small isolated populations surviving in north Wales and northern England. Its range reached a minimum at the beginning of the 20th century, as a result of habitat loss through deforestation and conversion of the land to agriculture, hunting for its fur and persecution for predation on game birds and chickens. Since then, its range in Scotland has increased due to the expansion of commercial forestry plantations, and more recently, the regeneration of native woodlands. The pine marten prefers well-wooded areas with plenty of cover, but it lives in more open habitats as well.
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 17:15:10 +0000