Feeding of the pine marten. Stone marten Marten color

Why is the stone marten called that? Do you think she really likes stones? Let us now tell you what kind of animal this is and why it is called that.

Marten

One of the most common predators in the mammal family is the marten. This small animal, with a flexible, slender body and fluffy fur, is the enemy of many animals, birds and even humans.

Scientists have identified 8 species of martens, the most famous of which are the stone marten and the pine marten.

What does a stone marten look like?

This species is widespread in various areas on the Eurasian continent. Gravitates towards areas with more warm climate. Unlike all other species of martens, it prefers open spaces and is not afraid to be close to human habitation. She can make her holes anywhere: in a barn, in a basement, a stable, a railway depot, in abandoned stork nests.

It is often found in rocky areas, which is why it got its name.

There are differences in appearance. The physique is approximately the same - an elongated body with a pointed muzzle, a long fluffy tail and short paws with five fingers. But the dimensions of stone martens are slightly different: the body is smaller, up to 55 cm long, weight up to 2.5 kg.

It can also be distinguished by the color of its fur. The characteristic spot on the neck is much lighter, almost white and has a forked shape, like a horseshoe, or it may not exist at all. Because of this spot, it is also called white-haired. The fur is not as fluffy as pine martens, the hair is hard and much shorter.

Listen to the voice of the stone marten

The nose is light, there is no fur on the paws at all. The marten has excellent hearing, vision and sense of smell.

How do they reproduce?

Martens become capable of bearing offspring at the age of 15 months. In one of summer months they find a mate. However, all martens have a peculiar feature. They carry the fetus for only a month, but the baby is born only after 8 months. This occurs due to the fact that the seed is, as it were, preserved in the female’s body until spring.
Only in April the marten will have 3, sometimes 4 cubs only 10 cm long. They are blind and have no fur on their body. Eyes open only at one month.

Mothers feed on milk for up to 2 months. And the cubs begin to find food on their own in the fall.

Martens live on average 3 years. Sometimes they live up to 10 years.

What do martens eat?

Martens are predators; their diet mainly consists of the meat of various small animals - rodents, rabbits and birds. Martens often get into chicken coops. When the chickens begin to rush around in panic, even a well-fed marten will not stop and will kill all the chickens due to the hunting instinct. They also climb into dovecotes.

These predators, having broken the victim's vertebra, suck out the warm blood from the not yet killed animal with a folded tongue.

Stone martens can catch up and grab a gaping bird, and also climb into nests and eat eggs.

In summer they can catch a variety of insects and frogs. Occasionally they eat plant foods, often fruits or berries.

Interesting facts from the life of martens

People hunt stone martens much less often than other species of martens, since their fur is not of particular value due to the coarseness of the hair. But we have to constantly fight them in households.

Stone martens, eating chickens or getting into a rabbitry, cause great damage, killing all the animals in a row.

But, oddly enough, they cause even more harm to cars. Martens are attracted to the smell of the engine, and they chew through the cables and hoses of a car left unattended at night. At the same time, they also put their mark on it, showing their relatives that this is the territory marked by it.

A predatory mammal with long, valuable fur from the mustelidae family and the marten genus is called the pine marten. In another way, it is also called the wallflower. Pine marten oblong and graceful.

Her valuable and beautiful fluffy tail has dimensions that are half the length of her body. The tail not only serves as an ornament to this animal, but with its help the marten manages to maintain balance when jumping and while climbing trees.

Its four short legs are characterized by the fact that with the arrival of winter cold, their feet are covered with hair, which helps the animal to easily move through snowdrifts and ice. These four paws have five toes, with curved claws.

They can retract halfway. The marten's muzzle is wide and elongated. The animal has a powerful jaw and mega sharp teeth. The marten's ears are triangular and relatively large in relation to the muzzle. They are rounded at the top and have a yellow edging.

The nose is sharp and black. The eyes are dark and at night their color becomes copper-red. Pine marten in the photo leaves only positive impressions. In appearance, this is a gentle and harmless creature with an innocent look. The beautiful color and quality of the marten's fur is striking.

It ranges from light chestnut with yellow to brown. In the area of the back, head and legs, the fur is always darker than in the area of the belly and sides. The tip of the animal's tail is almost always black.

Distinctive feature Martens differ from all other mustelid breeds in having yellow or orange coat color in the neck area, which extends beyond the front legs. This is where the second name of the marten came from - yellowthroat.

The parameters of the predator are similar to those of a large one. Body length 34-57 cm. Tail length 17-29 cm. Females are usually 30% smaller than males.

Features and habitat of the pine marten

All forest zone Eurasia is densely populated by representatives of this species. Forest martens live over a large area. They are found in places ranging from Great Britain to Western Europe, the Caucasus and the Mediterranean islands, Corsica, Sicily, Sardinia, Iran and Asia Minor.

The animal prefers the nature of mixed and deciduous forests, less often coniferous ones. Rarely, martens sometimes settle high in mountain ranges, but only in places where there are trees.

The animal prefers places with trees with hollows. It can go out into open areas solely to hunt. Rocky landscapes are not a suitable place for martens; they avoid them.

The wallflower does not have a stable abode. She finds refuge in trees at an elevation of 6 meters, in hollows, abandoned nests, crevices and windbreaks. In such places the animal stops for a day's rest.

With the arrival of twilight, the predator begins the hunt, and after it looks for shelter in another place. But with the onset of severe frosts, its position in life may change somewhat, the marten for a long time sits in a shelter, eating pre-stocked provisions. The pine marten tries to settle away from people.

Pictures with pine marten They make you look at it with tenderness and some kind of irresistible desire to take the animal in your hands and stroke it. The more hunters valuable fur these animals and the less forested area with favorable conditions for the habitat of martens, the more difficult it becomes for them to live and reproduce. Pine marten in Russia is still considered important commercial species because of the value of her fur.

Character and lifestyle

The pine marten, more than all other representatives of its genus, prefers to live and hunt in trees. She easily climbs their trunks. Her tail helps her cope with this; it serves as a rudder for the marten, and sometimes as a parachute, thanks to which the animal jumps down without any consequences.

The tops of trees are absolutely not scary for the marten; it easily moves from one branch to another and can jump four meters. She also jumps on the ground. Swims skillfully, but does this very rarely.

In the photo there is a pine marten in a hollow

This is a dexterous and very fast animal. It can cover long distances quite quickly. Her senses of smell, sight and hearing are at top level, which helps a lot in hot. By its nature, it is a funny and inquisitive animal. Martens communicate with each other by purring and growling, and babies emit sounds similar to chirping.

Listen to the meow of a pine marten

Nutrition

This omnivore is not particularly picky in its food. The marten feeds depending on the season, habitat and availability of food. But she still gives greater preference to animal food. The most favorite prey of martens are squirrels.

Very often, a predator catches a squirrel right in its own hollow, but if this does not happen, it hunts for it for a long time and persistently, jumping from branch to branch. There is a huge list of representatives of the animal world that fall into grocery basket martens.

Starting from small snails, ending with hares and hedgehogs. Interesting facts about the pine marten they say that she kills her victim with a single bite to the back of the head. The predator does not refuse carrion either.

The animal uses summer and autumn to replenish its body with vitamins. Berries, nuts, fruits, everything that is rich are used useful microelements. The marten prepares some of them for future use and stores them in a hollow. The most favorite delicacy of the wallflower are blueberries and rowan berries.

Reproduction and lifespan of the pine marten

In the summer these animals begin their rut. One male mates with one or two females. In winter, martens often have a false rut. At this time, they behave restlessly, become warlike and nervous, but mating does not happen.

The female's pregnancy lasts 236-274 days. Before giving birth, she takes care of the shelter and settles there until the babies arrive. 3-8 cubs are born. Even though they are covered with a little fur, the babies are blind and deaf.

In the photo there is a baby pine marten

Hearing begins to emerge only on the 23rd day, and the eyes begin to see on the 28th day. The female can leave her babies while hunting. In case of possible danger, she moves them to a safer place.

At four months they can already live independently, but for some time they live with their mother. The marten lives up to 10 years, and when good conditions Its lifespan is about 15 years.

The marten inhabits European forests. This large animal has very lush and soft fur. On the back it is gray-brown in color, on the sides it becomes lighter. In the area of the animal’s larynx there is a spot of bright red color. In winter, the spot darkens.

Martens inhabit mixed and taiga landscapes, where there is a lot of dead wood. The marten builds its homes at a considerable height in hollows. She climbs trees well, jumps on them, from branch to branch. Her bushy ponytail acts as a parachute. Martens are good swimmers and runners. They can move with lightning speed on the ground and deep loose snow. She doesn't fall through the snow, because her paws are in winter time well furred.

This animal is very dexterous and strong. It hunts large birds (grouse, hare), and also feeds on rodents, birds, frogs and squirrels. And in the summer the animal feasts on berries and loves rowan. She devastates the nests of birds and animals.

In mid-summer, these animals begin their mating season. Then after this, the female gives birth to up to 8 children. Babies are born completely helpless and blind. By six months, the cubs become independent, reaching the size of adults. For martens, especially for inexperienced animals, foxes and wolves are especially dangerous. But these predators do not affect the number of martens.

Human hunting and excessive hunting of fur-bearing animals have led to the fact that this animal is on the verge of extinction. The number of martens is also affected by the fact that their habitats are being reduced due to the cutting down of old, overmature forest, convenient for nesting.

Photo gallery of martens

The forest is home to many different animals. Predators, mammals, birds, reptiles - far from full list forest inhabitants. The forest beauty, wearing a fur coat of rare beauty the color of buckwheat honey, is called a marten. It is also called the wallflower.

Characteristics and description

This animal belongs to the mustelidae family and the marten genus, a nimble, graceful creature. During the hunt, the marten easily climbs trees, covers long distances and is able to hunt for a long time.

So, what does a marten look like? The forest dweller is a predator, whose height does not exceed 50 cm. A short muzzle with a wide forehead, the head is crowned big ears having a rounded top. The nose is black, the eyes have a reddish tint at night.

The body is elongated, flexible and slender. The limbs are small and short, the paws end in claws. In winter, the sole of the animal is overgrown with hair, which allows the animal not to fall into the snowdrifts. With such a physique, the marten easily overcomes obstacles in the form of branches and reacts with lightning speed to the appearance of prey. This animal is not susceptible to obesity, as it is constantly on the move.

On the neck of an animal, a distinctive sign is considered to be light spot in the neck area. Pine martens are considered a valuable fur-bearing animal; its fur is highly valued in the production and tailoring of fur coats and other fur products, therefore the marten is protected by law.

Pine martens weigh relatively little - an adult does not exceed 2 kg. Females reach 1.5 kg, males are heavier and taller. Despite its small height and weight, this animal has a powerful jaw with sharp teeth. The pine marten is capable of chewing through the tubular bones of its prey.

Habitat

An individual of this breed lives mainly in coniferous-beech forests. In the regions of Polesie, in mixed forests, the animal is most common. The pine marten is able to survive even in high mountain areas, the altitude of which is about 1800 meters above sea level.

The favorite habitat of representatives of this species is considered to be forest areas untouched by humans. Windbreaks and hollows in old trees help the pine marten to hide from danger and find warm place for wintering and just to take a break.

Animals do not live in one place. They adhere to a nomadic lifestyle. In order to rest during the day, the animal finds a suitable hollow higher up and sleeps until dark. The animal hunts mainly at night, during the day it is almost impossible to meet him.

Representatives of this species live alone. Each individual is secretly assigned a certain area of territory, which the animals diligently mark. The territory of females is somewhat smaller than that of males, sometimes the boundaries can overlap.

IN wildlife This type of predator has many enemies. These are usually referred to as:

Owl;
Lynx;
Wolf;
Hawk;
Fox;

Nutrition

To the question “What does a marten eat?” there is an answer. As mentioned earlier, representatives of this breed are predators. The diet of this species includes small warm-blooded animals and insects, such as:

hares;
proteins;
rodents;
shrews;
beetles;
some types of snakes (snakes);
frogs;
black grouse;
hazel grouse;

Protein food occupies an important place in the diet of this charming predator. Natural source squirrels are insects. Dragonflies and all kinds of beetles supplement the predator's meat diet.

In the cold season, when it becomes more and more difficult to eat every day, the pine marten can get as close as possible to a person’s home. In this case, the victims of the predatory animal are chickens and pigeons.

Reproduction

Mating in this species occurs in the warm summer season. During this period of time, females experience estrus; it lasts 2-4 days. There are not enough males for all the females, so the male mates with several females in turn.

In winter, males are characterized by false mating seasons : at this time, aggressive males pester females, but mating itself does not happen.

Pregnancy is very long, lasting about 274 days. In fact, the baby develops in the womb for only 30-40 days, the rest of the time is occupied by the latent stage.

Before giving birth, the female begins to carefully prepare for the appearance of offspring. Selects a place to build a nest. The nest is ready, the female remains in it until giving birth. Cubs are born in the month of April, weight does not exceed 40 g, length is 11 cm. Newborn babies are blind and deaf at birth, hearing emerges on the 23rd day of life, they begin to see on the 28th day of life.

The mother tries not to abandon her children, leaving the nest only during the hunt. If the cubs are in danger, the mother either moves the small pine martens to another location or eats the entire brood.

For the first month and a half of life, the cubs feed only on their mother's milk, and they rapidly gain weight. After a month and a half, the grown cubs go hunting with their mother and actively explore the territory near their native nest.

Until autumn, children live with their mother, then each begins an independent life. There have been cases where the cubs remain with their mother until spring. At the age of 2 years, representatives of mustelids are fully sexually mature. Conception usually occurs in the third year of life.

Marten and man

The fur of this animal is extremely valuable; people, bypassing the law, exterminate representatives of this species for profit. Deforestation is also contributing to the decline in the yellowjacket population., in which the animal is comfortable living in its natural environment.

Some people, as an experiment, tried to keep martens at home. Opinions were divided. Yellowfly behaved differently at home. In some cases, she quickly got used to people, after short time the animal fawned over the person and calmly accepted stroking and hugs. Some individuals did not express any interest in the person and behaved as if there was no person in the environment of the wallflower. The third group of yellowjackets behaved extremely aggressively, and the owners had to release the animal into its natural environment habitat.