Blog post 8 Fishers
The animal that I decide to research is Fishers. Fisher is a medium sized mammal, and their primary prey is snowshoe hare and porcupine. The fisher belongs to the kingdom Animalia, phylum chordate, class mammalian, order Carnivora, family Mustelidae, genus being pekania and species pennant. The binomial naming of fisher is pekania pennant. There was a period of uncontrolled trapping and over predation during the late 1800 and early 1900 (Gerald and Jeffrey 1). The result was that the fisher population declined the extent that when the carnivore survey was done in late 1990, no fishers were detected. Therefore, the fisher was then listed as an endangered species in Washington. To save the species a recovery plan was introduced which focused on the provision of areas that would support the remaining fisher population. Olympic National Park was established as a recovery area for the species. A radio transmitter was put on each fisher as to help scientist trace their movement to enhance their survival. Following the reintroduction of fisher total of ninety fisher species that composed of fifty females and forty males were released in the Olympic National Park. Others areas which the fishers are found include the Olympic peninsula and the south and north Cascades. These areas provide natural habitat for the fisher since they are forested and mountainous.
Fisher are carnivorous feeding on moles, mice, squirrels, reptiles and insects. The most fascinating is that they do also feed on porcupines bearing in mind how difficult it is to kill a porcupine. The fisher will attack the most susceptible areas of the porcupine’s body, the face and the belly and eventually goes for the kill. The fisher starts to feed on the head to neck to sterile the quills. The life cycle of a fisher begin by sexual reproduction. In viable females reproduction takes place in between March and April season(Gerald and Jeffrey 2). This is when an implantation is done and an embryo begins to form. After mating the female fisher gives birth in the tenth or eleventh month and may deliver one to six kits. The kits are delivered inside a hollow tree and at time of delivery they are usually blind. Nevertheless, research indicates that fisher have very low reproductive rate this have been so because in western washing ton fishers have been subjected to areas which are snow packed with latitude below 1800m.
Fisher has generally faced a great threat following illegal captures from humans for fur and also the high demand for their pelt. This has led to the radical decline of this species. The lack of pest control that have consciously attacked fisher have greatly reduced the fisher viability but this has been cub by introduction of a pest control unit (John 1) Destruction of the natural habitat and mismanagement of forests have greatly caused their decrease in the ecosystem. Pollution from industries and continuous use of fossil fuels has caused a potential threat due to global warming. Fisher has become so vulnerable for the fur and the bushy tail they possess and this has subjected them to poaching. Fisher are vulnerable for the fur and pelts which have a high market demand .It is worth noting that fisher have no known predators besides man and this makes then to be so unique. They are also known to be very good swimmers.
Sources:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/fisher/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00228/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00227/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01908/
Fisher are carnivorous feeding on moles, mice, squirrels, reptiles and insects. The most fascinating is that they do also feed on porcupines bearing in mind how difficult it is to kill a porcupine. The fisher will attack the most susceptible areas of the porcupine’s body, the face and the belly and eventually goes for the kill. The fisher starts to feed on the head to neck to sterile the quills. The life cycle of a fisher begin by sexual reproduction. In viable females reproduction takes place in between March and April season(Gerald and Jeffrey 2). This is when an implantation is done and an embryo begins to form. After mating the female fisher gives birth in the tenth or eleventh month and may deliver one to six kits. The kits are delivered inside a hollow tree and at time of delivery they are usually blind. Nevertheless, research indicates that fisher have very low reproductive rate this have been so because in western washing ton fishers have been subjected to areas which are snow packed with latitude below 1800m. Fisher has generally faced a great threat following illegal captures from humans for fur and also the high demand for their pelt. This has led to the radical decline of this species. The lack of pest control that have consciously attacked fisher have greatly reduced the fisher viability but this has been cub by introduction of a pest control unit (John 1) Destruction of the natural habitat and mismanagement of forests have greatly caused their decrease in the ecosystem. Pollution from industries and continuous use of fossil fuels has caused a potential threat due to global warming. Fisher has become so vulnerable for the fur and the bushy tail they possess and this has subjected them to poaching. Fisher are vulnerable for the fur and pelts which have a high market demand .It is worth noting that fisher have no known predators besides man and this makes then to be so unique. They are also known to be very good swimmers.
Sources:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/fisher/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00228/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/00227/
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01908/
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