Washington

The fisher (Martes pennanti) is generally associated with mesic, closed canopy, mature coniferous forests in western landscapes. Yet, the impacts of fragmentation, habitat modification, and road development in these areas are poorly understood. The primary objective of this research is to achieve a better understanding of how fishers use habitats at home range and landscape scales in North-Central Idaho to provide forest managers with needed information to better include fisher ecology in management plans. We propose to live trap and collar ≥30 adult fishers across a continuum of fragmentation levels in the Clearwater, Palouse and St. Joe River drainages. Satellite telemetry data will be used to create models of habitat suitability and predictive occurrence that will be used to assess landscape connectivity, core habitats and linkage zones in the St. Joe-Coeur d’Alene-Upper Clearwater Critical Core & Corridor Area.

Primary motivations:

Regulation

Conservation Mission

Primary goals:

1. Quantify resource use and selection by fishers at the intra-home range scale across a range of forest landscape mosaics.

Progress:

In progress

2. Evaluate how landscape spatial structure, configuration, and habitat modification affect habitat selection and resource use by fishers.

Progress:

In Progress

3. Develop habitat models that predict the probability of fisher presence/absence and identify critical core and linkage zones for potential future conservation actions.

Progress:

In Progess

4. Develop practical management goals and principles for land managers to better incorporate the ecological needs of fishers into forest management plans.

Progress:

In Progess

5. Advance the use of satellite telemetry in defining wildlife-habitat relationships by the innovative application of this technology to a mid-sized forest carnivore.

Progress:

In Publication

Consistent with plans:

State Wildlife Action Plan

Targeted habitats:

• Forests and Woodlands
  • Conifer Forests

Targeted species:

• Fisher Martes pennanti

Is the success of this project's actions being monitored?   No/Unknown