Hello! May I introduce myself? I’m a pine marten. I’m a superior carnivore from the weasel family, with fluffy fur, sharp white teeth, and the slender, athletic body of a weasel god. I’m one of the cutest animals out there. They say beauty lies in the eye of the beholder, but they clearly have never seen a pine marten.
This Is My Habitat
If so, it’s not surprising. I’m a master of disguise. My brown fur blends in perfectly with my surroundings. I hide in the woods of northern North America, especially in Alaska and Canada, in hollow trees, crevices, and other animals’ empty burrows.
They used to think I only live in old conifer forests. Still, some of your fellow humans beings recently discovered my (until then) well-hidden secret… I hide in deciduous (leafy) forests as well. It’s just hard to find me. I’m nearly invisible. And I’m nocturnal.
Which means I’m active during the night while humans are asleep. Which again reduces your chance to meet me in real life.
But hey, don’t be sad, here’s an awesome picture of me instead!
Well, occasionally, you can get lucky and become a witness of my acrobatic skills even in the middle of the day, watching me easily jumping from branch to branch.
As I said before, I’m an athletic dude.
A Pine Marten Doesn't Need To Hibernate!
And guess what? I don’t even need to hibernate! I may sleep a bit more and lower my activity during the cold winter, but as a pine marten I don’t hibernate.
That’s me being awesome in the snow. ->>>
The Pine Marten Diet
I’m actually not a picky eater, but listen – look at my body. I’m nearly fat-free. This is not the body of a weasel who’s eating sugar all day. I don’t drink. I don’t smoke. And I eat meat. Lots of meat. Fresh. Meat. Mice, Birds, Frogs, Voles, Moles. You name it! I eat about 3 Voles per day. Insects can be great snacks too. I don’t mind hunting bigger prey either. I can kill hares. Easily. They’re just really fast! Well, and every now and then I eat some fruits. From my perspective as a pine marten, this whole forest is one big restaurant.
I'm a pine marten, not your pet.
One last thing! I don’t blame anyone for wanting a pet pine marten. I mean, come on, look how adorable we are! Perfect, fluffy fur. An adorable face. And we’re so clever! But mate, We’re not ferrets! This is what our home looks like:
Some of us have a territory that’s 6 square miles big. This is where we live, play, and mate. And where I jump from tree to tree trying to catch delicious food. Just doing pine marten things. Please don’t try to keep one of us as a pet. If our well being isn’t enough reason to stay away from keeping us as pets, know this:
We stink! Yes. We’re going to pee on all your stuff to mark our territory.
Pine Marten facts in a nutshell
- Is part of the weasel family
- Lives in northern North America, especially in Alaska and Canada
- Carnivore, like all weasels
- Nocturnal (=night active)
- Lives in old conifer forests, but not exclusively
- Has a huge territory of up to square miles
- Not a good pet
- Doesn’t hibernate
- Cute As a Button