American marten

Description:

A member of the Mustelidae family, related to weasels and otters; about two feet long from nose to tail, dark brown.

Habitat:

Older forests of the northern United States and Canada.

Notes:

I've spent years in this little patch of forest, yet never saw one of these guys until I placed a camera trap on an animal trail. Though perhaps that's a comment on my powers of observation rather than the martens' stealth. A lovely description in "Canoe Country Wildlife: A Field Guide to the North Woods and Boundary Waters" by Mark Stensaas: http://books.google.com/books?id=vsDwic8...