Pine Martens Return to Southwest England After 100 Years!

Quick Smiles:

• Pine martens have been spotted breeding in southwest England for the first time in over a century.
• The reintroduction project has been a collaborative effort, involving multiple organizations and local volunteers.
• Plans for further releases are underway, aiming to bolster the population in the region.

Camera traps have captured footage that has conservationists beaming with joy: pine martens, a species absent from southwest England for over 100 years, are breeding once again.

This development is a result of a groundbreaking reintroduction project aimed at restoring the natural balance by reintroducing these arboreal predators.

In the autumn of 2024, 15 pine martens—comprising eight females and seven males—were released in undisclosed locations across the southwest.

The first sightings of kits were recorded at a secret site in Dartmoor National Park this June.

Tracey Hamston, who leads the Two Moors Pine Marten Project, expressed her excitement over the discovery.

“When our volunteers discovered the footage of pine marten kits on one of our trail cameras we were ecstatic,” she said.

“This is a historic moment for the return of a native animal and for the future of the southwest’s woodlands.”

“To have breeding pine martens back after a century’s absence signals a positive step in nature’s recovery. It’s also testament to the many hours work undertaken by the project partnership and dozens of local volunteers,” she concluded.

The camera trap footage features the young martens exploring their new environment, with one video showing three kits playfully chasing each other through the woodland.

Another clip captures a mother with her two kits scampering along a fallen tree near a stream.

Pine martens, part of the Mustelidae family, were once common in the southwest but faced decline due to habitat loss and the fur trade.

Since their release, the project team has invested countless hours in tracking the martens, setting up den boxes, and monitoring camera traps to better understand their behavior.

“Staff and volunteers have been checking camera traps for several months and over the past few weeks have been eagerly anticipating seeing kits,” said Jack Hunt, Assistant Site Manager. “This sighting is wonderful news.”

Typically, female pine martens give birth to two or three kits in the spring, who remain hidden in their dens for several weeks before venturing out in early summer.

These kits stay with their mothers until they become independent the following spring.

The Two Moors Pine Marten Project, a coalition of seven organizations, has been instrumental in this successful reintroduction.

Experts anticipate a gradual increase in the pine marten population in the southwest, although their nocturnal and elusive nature means sightings will remain rare.

Looking ahead, the project plans another release in autumn 2025, with around 20 animals set to be introduced to Exmoor.

“Exmoor’s woodlands are well-suited to the animals,” said Hamston. “Their arrival in early autumn will coincide with the local natural harvest of wild berries—food which pine martens love.”

The project encourages anyone who encounters these beautiful creatures in Devon to reach out through their website.

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