THE MARTEN.
The marten is a carnivorous animal belonging to the same family as
the weasel. The principal species are the pine marten of North
America, the beech or stone marten of northern Europe, the sable of
Russia and Siberia and the Japanese sable. Naturalists usually class
the fisher with the martens, also. The Russian sable is the finest of
the martens, the pine marten of Labrador being next in value. The
pine marten is found throughout the timbered regions of Canada and
Alaska, also in the mountainous districts of the western states. A
few are still found in northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, New
York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
In size the marten is about the same as the mink of the North and
East, being somewhat lighter in the body, but the longer fur causes
it to appear fully as large. It has longer legs than the mink, and
the feet are larger and heavily furred. The tail is thick and bushy,
the ears and eyes, large and the muzzle is more pointed than that of
the mink. The fur is very fine and soft, the color varying from a
rich yellow to almost black. The fur of the tail is darker than that
of the body, and the face, lighter. The ears, on the edges, are
greyish white and there Is always a yellow or orange spot on the
throat.
In the more southern portions of their range, the martens are quite
pale. The finest and darkest skins come from Labrador and the country
east and south of Hudson Bay, also from northern British Columbia and
the interior of Alaska and the Yukon province. The marten is strictly
an animal of the woods, being found only in the heavily timbered
country. Their favorite haunts are in the rough, broken country,
where the timber is of various kinds. They feed on rabbits,
squirrels, mice, birds and eggs and probably have no trouble in
obtaining a sufficient amount of food, but unlike the mink and the
weasel, they never kill more than is needed to supply their wants.
The young are usually born in April, and there are from three to five
at a birth. Just where they make their dens I cannot say. Some
writers say they live in hollow trees, while others assert that they
live in holes in the rocks or ground. I should say that the latter
idea is most likely to be correct, at least as regards the marten of
the far north, as in that part of the country, hollow trees are few
and far between. One peculiarity regarding the martens is the fact
that they occasionally disappear from a locality in which they were
formerly numerous. The common supposition is that they migrate to new
feeding grounds when food becomes scarce.
The marten travels mostly in the gullies and depressions on the
mountains and hills. As they usually follow the same route, when one
sees their tracks in such a place, he can be reasonably sure, if he
sets his trap there, that he will make a catch. They are not shy or
suspicious and are easily caught. In many ways, marten trapping is
the most pleasant as well as the most profitable kind of trapping. As
they are found only in the timbered country, the trapper does not
feel the storms like he would in an open country. They are easily
caught, light to carry and easily skinned. Moreover, they are a very
valuable fur and if one is in a good locality, he will make a large
catch in a season. They usually become prime about the 15th of
October and remain in good condition until the last of March.
In countries where the snow does not fall too deep, the traps are set
in small enclosures, the same as for the mink. If there is snow on
the ground, I set my traps as follows. With my snowshoes, I tramp the
snow down solid, at the foot of a tree, and build a small pen of
stakes, or chunks split from an old stump. The stakes or chunks, are
arranged so as to form the sides of the pen and the sides are placed
about six or seven inches apart, the tree forming the back of the
pen. I roof the pen with evergreen boughs, to protect the trap from
the falling snow. It is a good idea to leave a couple of boughs hang
down over the mouth of the pen so as to hide the bait from the birds,
and also to prevent the rabbits from entering the pen. I set the trap
on a bed of boughs, just inside of the pen, and cover lightly with
tips of evergreen. The bait is placed on a stick behind the trap. I
fasten the trap to a toggle, but if only marten is expected, the trap
may be fastened in almost any way, as they seldom escape. It is also
a good idea to bend a small twig and place it under the pan of the
trap, to prevent it from being sprung by birds, squirrels and
weasels.
For bait, rabbit, partridge, squirrel, fish, small birds or meat of
almost any kind is good. The Indians sometimes smoke-cure salmon,
pickerel, or white fish, for marten bait, and other trappers use
putrefied salmon roe, but the majority prefer to use fresh bait. Some
trappers advise dragging a piece of fresh, bloody meat along the
line, to lead the marten to the trap.
[Illustration: A Marten Set.]
Another very good method is the following: Find a small spruce, about
three inches in diameter and cut the tree about two feet above the
snow, leaving the top of the stump V shape. Draw the tree forward and
lay it over the stump, so that the butt of the tree will be three or
three and a half feet above the snow. Now, about a foot back from the
end, flatten off a place for the trap and set the trap on the pole.
Tie the trap fast with a light string and loop the chain around the
tree. Split the butt of the tree, and fasten the bait in the split.
This is a very good set, possessing advantages over most methods. The
birds can not eat the bait, the trap is not bothered by weasels or
rabbits, the marten must stand on the trap when trying to get the
bait, and when caught, falls off the pole and can not get back.
In the mountains, where the snow falls deep, the traps are set on the
trees, five or six feet above the snow. The most common way, is to
make two cuts in the tree with an axe, and drive in two wooden pegs,
about five inches apart. Set the trap and place it on the pegs, one
peg passing through the bow of the spring, the other between the jaws
and the bottom of the trap. Draw the chain around the tree and staple
solidly. The bait is pinned to the tree, about a foot above the trap.
A bunch of boughs may be placed over the bait to hide it from the
birds.
If desired, a notch may be cut in the tree and a trap set in the
notch. The notch should be about four inches deep and about twelve
inches from top to bottom. Cut the bottom smooth, so the trap will
set solid and fasten the bait in the top of the notch. Staple the
trap to the tree. If desired, you can lean a pole against the tree
for the marten to run up on, but this is not necessary.
The trapper should always be on the lookout for places in which the
trap may be set without much labor. Sometimes a tree can be found,
with a hollow in one side and this makes a good place for a set. Lean
a pole against the tree, with one end resting in the hollow, set a
trap on the pole and place a bait in the cavity above the trap. At
other times a cavity may be made in the side of a rotten stub and a
trap set in the same way. The traps recommended for marten are the
No. 1 of any make, but the No. 0 Newhouse is much used. If there are
fishers, lynx and other large animals about, it is best to use a No.
1 1/2 trap. Deadfalls are also used and they may be built on the
ground or snow, or on the top of a stump, or the side of a tree. The
track of the marten resembles that of the mink, except that it is a
trifle larger and the footprint wider in proportion to the length.
The toes do not make as clear a print as do those of the mink, the
feet being more heavily furred.
[Illustration: The Fisher.]