Pine marten

Martes martes

The European pine marten is an agile, mostly nocturnal hunter of our forests. With its slender body, sharp climbing claws and bushy tail, which helps it balance, it moves effortlessly through the treetops. Its distinctive yellow throat patch makes it easy to recognise.

The solitary pine marten usually spends the day sleeping in tree hollows or other sheltered hiding places before setting out to hunt at dusk. As a skilled predator, it helps regulate populations of small mammals in the forest. After mating in summer, a remarkable biological adaptation occurs: delayed implantation (embryonic diapause). The embryo does not begin developing until months later, ensuring that the young are born in spring, when food is plentiful.