[HN Gopher] Pine martens return to Dartmoor after 150-year absence
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       Pine martens return to Dartmoor after 150-year absence
        
       Author : zeristor
       Score  : 78 points
       Date   : 2024-10-01 22:43 UTC (5 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.theguardian.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.theguardian.com)
        
       | cmsefton wrote:
       | > Studies have also shown the pine martens are effective
       | predators of grey squirrels, giving hope that they may provide a
       | natural control for the introduced squirrel, which damages trees
       | in commercial plantations and has virtually wiped out the red
       | squirrel in England.
       | 
       | If, like me, you were wondering whether they also predate red
       | squirrels, apparently pine martens hunt and eat grey squirrels
       | far more, as they're able to easily raid grey squirrel nests. Red
       | squirrels have evolved alongside pine martens and have better
       | awareness to the threat they pose. This article was informative:
       | 
       | https://www.discoverwildlife.com/news/pine-martens-predate-o...
        
         | zeristor wrote:
         | I believe red squirrels are lighter than pine martens, and so
         | can go out further on branches, whereas grey squirrels can't.
         | 
         | I'm guessing they'll be able to reintroduce red squirrels in
         | these areas in due course.
        
           | Tade0 wrote:
           | I guess the key indicator for the martens is that grey
           | squirrels are simply a larger meal.
        
           | adrian_b wrote:
           | Sometimes they might go further on suitable thin branches,
           | but I doubt that this matters much. I have never heard of a
           | case when a marten could not advance towards a squirrel due
           | to fear of breaking the branch.
           | 
           | What red squirrels can do and martens cannot do, is to jump
           | down from the tree from a relatively great height without
           | injury, due to their low weight and fluffy hair and then
           | climb into another tree, far from the marten.
           | 
           | It is likely that this behavior of some squirrels is what has
           | lead to the evolution of the flying squirrels.
        
         | sva_ wrote:
         | Seems like there are some squirrel wars going on in the UK
         | 
         | https://www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/red-squirrels-b...
        
         | raesene9 wrote:
         | Anecdotally I can say that red squirrels and Pine Martens can
         | co-exist quite happily, as I live in an area where we see both
         | regularly and the presence of the Pine Martens doesn't seem to
         | intimidate the squirrels or reduce their numbers significantly.
         | 
         | Also turns out that Pine Martens are quite fond of peanuts.
        
       | pfdietz wrote:
       | I was a bit confused because there's a related species in North
       | America, Martes americana, that is also sometimes called the pine
       | marten (more properly, the American marten or American pine
       | marten). The European species is Martes martes.
       | 
       | The American species clearly doesn't extirpate gray squirrels,
       | but in North America red and gray squirrels do coexist. However,
       | these red squirrels are also a different species, Tamiasciurus
       | hudsonicus, not the European species, Sciurus vulgaris. The
       | American pine marten is a predator of the American red squirrel.
       | 
       | Squirrel taxonomy seems to be in a state of flux at present due
       | to DNA information becoming available.
        
         | card_zero wrote:
         | > However, these red squirrels are also a different species
         | 
         | Less tufty ears, more violent.
        
           | pfdietz wrote:
           | No Beatrix Potter character for these psychos.
        
       | SonOfLilit wrote:
       | Apart from being cute, beautiful woodland creatures, pine martens
       | are famously the most sympathetic tech interviewers:
       | 
       | https://aphyr.com/posts/341-hexing-the-technical-interview
        
         | ndsipa_pomu wrote:
         | That's such a good tangent that I had to upvote. I've read it
         | before, but it's well worth re-reading.
        
         | mrec wrote:
         | "snicker-slithing susurrential warrens" is just insanely
         | beautiful.
        
       | riedel wrote:
       | Just quickly skimmed the article but does the article answer why
       | they seem to be everywhere in Europe except for England ? [0]
       | 
       | [0]
       | https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/European...
        
         | cmsefton wrote:
         | > Pine martens were driven to extinction in England at the turn
         | of the 20th century by the loss of forests and persecution,
         | with gamekeepers in particular targeting the animals for
         | preying upon pheasants and poultry.
        
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