American marten

The American marten is also known as the pine marten, or Apistane'wj in the Mi'kmaw language.

On this page

• Behaviour
• Species at risk
• Protection and management
• Volunteer opportunity

Behaviour

The American marten is a forest-dwelling member of the mustelid (weasel) family.

Diet

The American marten is an omnivore, meaning that it eats both animals and plants. It preys on:

• small mammals, especially American red squirrel
• amphibians
• fish
• birds
• carrion
• insects

Berries, fruits, nuts, and seeds also make up a large portion of the marten's diet.

Habitat

Kejimkujik protects habitat needed for the American marten to thrive: old forests dominated by eastern hemlock and red spruce. Elsewhere in Nova Scotia, these special places are becoming increasingly rare due to logging.

Species at risk

Historically, American martens were a common inhabitant of the old coniferous forests of Nova Scotia. Martens were intensively trapped for their fur throughout the 19th century. Due to overhunting by fur trappers and the loss of habitat caused by logging activity, this mammal is now listed as an endangered species under Nova Scotia’s Endangered Species Act.

By the 1930s, they were thought to be extirpated (locally extinct) in mainland Nova Scotia.

Protection and management

In the late 1980s, Parks Canada and the Canadian Wildlife Service re-introduced the American marten to Kejimkujik, from New Brunswick.

As a small, timid species that inhabits some of Kejimkujik’s most remote forests, American martens are seldom seen.

During the winter months when many other predators are hibernating, Parks Canada deploys photographic bait stations to better document American martens in Kejimkujik.

 

Volunteer opportunity

Visitors using services like iNaturalist have provided some of the most reliable records of this elusive animal in recent years. These citizen science observations have confirmed the marten's continued presence on the local landscape.

Share your observations on iNaturalist