Habitat
Habitat & Geography
Where does this organism live?
The Martes pennanti is found in coniferous or mixed forests in the
northern
What is its distribution and ecological niche?
Distribution fishers are solitary, and only associate with each other for
mating purposes. Populations of the Martes pennani have been reduced because of
the devastation of fur trade and the loss of forest habitat.
The Martes pennani has three main limiting factors that define its
habitat: foraging habitat den sites and overhead cover. The diet of a fisher
consists of any animal it can catch and overtake. Since fishers prey on small
animals, forests with underbrush are needed to provide cover for the prey. This
is a very touchy necessity because to much undergrowth can impede the fishers
hunt.
Fishers tend to exist in areas that provide good den sites. These sites
include standing hollow deciduous trees and openings in rock ledges. Coniferous
dominated mixed woods tend to provide a sufficient den sites.
The third and final factor that seems to formulate a habitat is an
overhead cover. Since the fisher lives in a climate that is covered in snow in
the winter time a canopy is a necessity that makes up for that lack of the
fishers adoptions to deep snow. The cover intercepts the snow and provides
relief for the Martes pennani.
What other kinds of organisms
live in its habitat?
The mixed coniferous and mixed forests contain an abundance of different
organisms from all of the major kingdoms in the classification system. The
Animalia kingdom is represented by fox, porcupines and rodents.
They also include smaller organisms from the arthropoda phylum such as the honey
bee, millipedes, and termites. The
Plantae
kingdom is present in the conifers and soft wood trees of the mixed wood
forests. Like any other habitat,
Fungi are present to decompose dead animalia and plantea
species. As with all habitats the protista kingdom is also present in the
habitat of the Martes pennani.
How does it fit into its niche?
As defined by Webster’s dictionary a niche is the
function or position of an organism or population within an ecological
community. The fisher is a carnivore, seeing that it eats other organism. The
main contribution that it gives to the habitat that it lives in is the control
of populations such as the snow shoe hair and the porcupine. The reintroduction
of the Martes pennai has been in large
part because of porcupine populations that have become over dominant in an area.
Interesting Quotes About Martens:
“Time Spent With A Marten Is Never Wasted”
“You Can Lead A Marten To Water But You Can’t Make It Drink”