Draft reintroduction plan includes about 300 American marten to be released in Pa.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission is waiting for the results of a public survey about American martens before taking the next step in reintroducing about 300 of the creatures in coming years.
The board on Saturday voted to table a decision to release the reintroduction and management plan to the public until board members receive the results of an independent public survey.
“Given that the survey is not yet completed, I believe it is appropriate that we table this issue at this time to allow for that survey to be completed and the results to be made available to the board and to the public,” Board of Commissioners President Kristen Schnepp-Giger said.
On Friday, the first day of the July board meeting, Thomas Keller, the agency’s furbearer biologist, spoke to the board about his ongoing efforts to reintroduce the animal that was lost in Pennsylvania because of deforestation and unregulated harvesting about 100 years ago.
The plan would include having five locations in northcentral Pennsylvania where martens would be placed.
“Sixty individuals at each site is what we need for a minimum population to sustain itself into the future,” Keller said.
Public lands under consideration include the Hammersley Wild Area; Wolf Run Wild Area; Allegheny National Forest; Loysalock State Forest; and state game lands 025, 293, 014 and 068.
The agency is looking to source the animals from other states and has received support from Maine, Michigan and New York. Keller is optimistic that New Brunswick, Canada, could be another option.
The animals will be caught in live traps and monitored through the help of partnering groups like the Pennsylvania Trapper Association and Elmwood Park Zoo.
Working on the plan: Biologist optimistic about reintroducing American martens in Pennsylvania
“We’re looking to release healthy marten in an optimal habitat,” he told the board.
The released animals would be fitted with radio collars and tags to allow researchers to monitor their locations and survival rates. The roughly 2-pound animals have a diet that consists of small mammals such as voles, mice and shrews as well as insects and plants. Martens are subject to predation from coyotes, fishers and owls.
With final board approval, the 10-year-project that could start in 2024 is expected to cost $2,030,584 including coordination, translocation of the animals and monitoring and research efforts.
“It’s an adaptive plan,” Keller said about the team guiding the long-term effort. If the reintroduction effort is successful, they will become another animal that can be harvested by trappers.
In developing the plan, 73 meetings and open houses were held across the state. “We’ve talked to well over 5,000 people in person, and that’s been extremely important,” Keller said. In addition, the agency provided statewide messaging in digital, audio and print media to help people learn and comment about reintroduction.
The commissioners' next meeting is scheduled for Sept. 15-16 in Erie.
More: American martens, last seen in the early 1900s, could be reintroduced in PA
Brian Whipkey is the outdoors columnist for USA TODAY Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at bwhipkey@gannett.com and sign up for our weekly Go Outdoors PA newsletter email on this website's homepage under your login name. Follow him on Facebook @whipkeyoutdoors,Twitter @whipkeyoutdoors and Instagram at whipkeyoutdoors.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Game Commission considers reintroducing American martens in Pa.
