An elusive creature known for its ferocious hunting skills has been caught on camera during a rare sighting in Pennsylvania. The sleek forest-dwelling mammal — known as a fisher — was thought to have been eliminated in the Keystone state due to unregulated hunting and massive deforestation in the late 19th century. At the time of the latest trail cam sighting in the woods of Murrysville, the fisher had previously only been spotted in areas 2-3 hours away. Bill Powers, founder of the wildlife streaming service Pixcams, said he put the camera on an old fallen log in a remote area and kept it there several months. When he pulled the SD card from the camera last week, he was amazed to have captured a photo of a fisher. The fisher is a mid-sized carnivore and the second largest member of the weasel family. Adult males can weigh up to 15 pounds, while females typically weigh 9 pounds. Surprisingly, fishers are not named for their fishing skills, as they don’t typically eat fish. Instead, the animal was named for its similar characteristics to the European polecat, or "fitch." Fishers use scent to locate prey and are renowned for their remarkable ability to stalk porcupines. In fact, they’re one of the few mammals to do so. A porcupine’s dangerous quills make them hard to kill, but the stealth-mannered fisher targets the rodents’ vulnerabilities, such as their head and face. Fishers also hunt rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, mice, reptiles, and occasionally outdoor cats.
Incredible Photo Shows a Ferocious Hunter Thought To Have Been Eliminated in Pennsylvania
An elusive creature known for its ferocious hunting skills has been caught on camera during a rare sighting in Pennsylvania. The sleek forest-dwelling mammal — known as a fisher — was thought to have been eliminated in the Keystone state due to unregulated hunting and massive deforestation in the late 19th century. At the time of the latest trail cam sighting in the woods of Murrysville, the fisher had previously only been spotted in areas 2-3 hours away. Bill Powers, founder of the wildlife streaming service Pixcams, said he put the camera on an old fallen log in a remote area and kept it there several months. When he pulled the SD card from the camera last week, he was amazed to have captured a photo of a fisher. The fisher is a mid-sized carnivore and the second largest member of the weasel family. Adult males can weigh up to 15 pounds, while females typically weigh 9 pounds. Surprisingly, fishers are not named for their fishing skills, as they don’t typically eat fish. Instead, the animal was named for its similar characteristics to the European polecat, or "fitch." Fishers use scent to locate prey and are renowned for their remarkable ability to stalk porcupines. In fact, they’re one of the few mammals to do so. A porcupine’s dangerous quills make them hard to kill, but the stealth-mannered fisher targets the rodents’ vulnerabilities, such as their head and face. Fishers also hunt rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, mice, reptiles, and occasionally outdoor cats.