Pine marten
- European pine martens raised in captivity can be very tame — at the sight of their owner, they run to meet them in the hope of getting a treat.
Age
European pine martens typically live from 18 to 30 years, with a maximum recorded lifespan of 18 years and 3 months, and a theoretical lifespan ranging from 7 years and 2 months to 29 years and 9 months. The species reaches sexual maturity from 11 months and 2 weeks to 1 year and 7 months. A pine marten's young have their eyes open from 3 weeks to 1 month and 1 week; during the embryonic stage, the embryo develops inside the mother’s body, with the entire gestation period lasting up to nine months due to delayed implantation. The newborn is blind and hairless, remaining sheltered while drinking its mother’s milk and growing rapidly during a period of from 1 month and 2 weeks to 3 months. Subsequently, the species enters the adult stage, lasting from 1 to 10 years, during which time it hunts independently, climbs trees, and defends its territory.
Phenotype
The Yellow-cheek is a species with dense brown fur featuring a bright yellow spot on the throat, and the fur becomes thicker in winter for protection against the cold; a long, fluffy tail helps maintain balance when jumping between trees, and sharp claws allow for good climbing on trunks and branches. An adult of the species has sharp teeth adapted for catching and processing prey, and long sensitive whiskers that help with orientation in the dark and in dense forests. A Yellow-cheek pup has short, soft fur with a yellow spot on the throat, and its eyes open approximately on the 35–40 day of life.
Physiology
European pine martens have a body height ranging from 17.8 centimeters to 3.5 meters, and a body length ranging from 40 to 60 centimeters; their mass varies from 1.66 kilograms. The embryonic stage involves bodies with masses from 1 to 15 grams and lengths from 1 millimeter to 3 centimeters. During the juvenile stage, the young have masses from 30 to 200 grams and lengths from 10 to 25 centimeters. Adult pine martens weigh from 0.7 to 1.4 kilograms and measure 40 to 55 centimeters in length.
Habitat
European pine martens inhabit temperate mixed forests with abundant oak, birch, and maple trees during the summer, as well as flooded meadows with plentiful grass, and taiga characterized by cold winters and many coniferous trees such as spruce and pine. The species’ landscape includes lakes and ponds, swamps and marshes, rivers and streams, dry land, and terrestrial forests; they are found at elevations up to 2 kilometers. The climate is consistently very wet, with rain occurring almost constantly and high humidity, and features cool summers with abundant rainfall and snow in winter, warm summers with plentiful rain, warm summers and mild winters, and pleasant summers ranging from 20 to 25 degrees Celsius.
Shelter
European pine martens are found in trees or close to the ground in forests and utilize dens for protection, reproduction, and rest. The dens are constructed from fur, berries, and grass.
Geography
The European pine marten occupies the Palearctic biogeographical region and inhabits several ecosystems, including Celtic broadleaf forests, broadleaf forests of Western Europe, Baltic mixed forests, European Atlantic mixed forests, Sarmatian mixed forests, and Ural mountain forests and taiga.
Feeding
The forest weasel is an active predator employing a strategy of active hunting and prey searching. The species catches small mammals, birds and their chicks, raids nests, eats insects and sometimes berries or fruits, with its diet including rodents, birds, eggs and insects. Hunting occurs in trees, and potential prey includes capercaillie, pigeons, squirrels, white partridges, grey voles, wall lizards, brown frogs, squirrels and chipmunks. The daily food requirement is from 120 g to 250 g, and the young feed on milk. The eagle is an enemy of the forest weasel.
Reproduction
European pine martens inhabit and develop on land, outside of bodies of water, and their young develop in nests built on or near the ground, or inside tree cavities and caves/crevices; the female demonstrates parental care within these nests. Embryonic development lasts 4 weeks, and the species reproduces through live birth, with young being born alive on land, not hatching from eggs or larvae. The female mates in summer, and because of delayed development, offspring are born in spring; she gives birth to a litter of 2–5 young in a den and raises them alone until autumn. Sexual reproduction is homogamy, always involving fertilization and without generational change, and the reproductive interval is 1 year. Pine martens reach maturity from 1 to 2 years, and the female has 2–5 litters.