Mammal returns to New Forest after decades of absence
Pine Martens have made a successful return to the area
A mammal that has been absent from the New Forest for decades has returned and is successfully breeding, a three-year study has found.
Pine Martens were once widespread across the UK, but habitat loss and persecution had left populations small and fragmented.
They are a member of the Weasel family and are roughly the size of a cat.
Senior Ecologist at Forestry England, Leanne Sargeant told Greatest Hits Radio that their return is "awesome", but they don't know where these individuals have come from.
"I'm hoping we might find out a little bit more about that going forward with DNA analysis and at least know the origin of the individuals, but we probably still won't know how they got here," she said.
Suggestions of their return started three-years ago and a combined study between Forestry England and Wild New Forest, supported by the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, was started.
30 hidden camera in 11 different parts of the forest were used to observe the nocturnal creatures. The team analysed over 1,000 hours of footage and have confirmed not only the Pine Martens return, but also that they've settled in the New Forest and are breeding.
Asked what makes the New Forest such a good home for Pine Martens, Leanne said:
"We've got lots of ancient Woodlands and they're full of a wide range of species. Pine Martens love that because they feed off lots of different things."
Pine Martens are omnivores, meaning they're not picky when it comes to food. "They'll just eat whatever's most abundant," said Leanne.
That can vary from seeds and berries to other small mammals.
The big, veteran trees that make up parts of the New Forest offer great homes for the species, allowing them to create dens for breeding and roosting.
And the reintroduction of Pine Martens is impacting Grey Squirrels, meaning their could be a possible return of red Squirrel's to the forest in the future.
The teams at Forestry England and Wild New Forest are working on restoring habitats for our furry friends in the New Forest, to offer them greater potential areas for roosting and breeding.
"But also in the shorter term, we are doing a lot of monitoring to understand where Pine Marten are in the New Forest and how they're expanding and looking at their breeding success.
"And the growth of the population, so that will help inform us when we're doing our forestry works so that we can make sure we're not impacting on any of the pine marten that are about," Leanne said.