Hunting & Trapping Digest 2008-2009 - (Page A12) Fishers & Bobcats HE FISHER is a mid-sized terrestrial and arboreal predator, the second largest member of the weasel family inhabiting Pennsylvania. Historic accounts suggest that prior to colonial development, fishers were once found throughout the state. Extensive timber cutting and dramatic human alterations to Pennsylvania’s forest habitats in the 19th and early 20th centuries resulted in population declines and, ultimately, extirpation of fisher populations by the early 1920s. The fisher has returned to Pennsylvania’s forests thanks to wide-scale conservation efforts by the Game Commission and surrounding states. Fisher populations are currently established and abundant in many areas of southwestern, central and northern Pennsylvania, and fisher populations continue to expand naturally into other areas of the Commonwealth. The state’s present-day fisher population is a direct result of a large-scale reintroduction program within Pennsylvania during the mid-1990s and expansion from reintroduced populations in West Virginia and New York. All of the Game Commission’s survey methods used to monitor changes in the fisher population indicate annual increases in fisher density and geographic expansion. Agency staff have documented 127 fisher roadkills, and the number of these reports has been increasing each year. Sightings by hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts have also increased. Based on last year’s Game Take survey, 12,470 hunters reported sightings of 460 fisher throughout the Commonwealth. Trappers have been capturing and releasing fisher in traps set for fox, coyote and raccoon. During last year’s season, the Game By Matt Lovallo, Wildlife Biologist T Commission estimated that 950 fishers were captured and subsequently released by trappers. Because the conservation and management of Pennsylvania’s fisher population is of interest to hunters, trappers and non-consumptive users alike, the agency has developed a comprehensive, conservation-based fisher management plan. The foundation of which lies in this plan’s mission statement: “To promote stability and continued expansion of fisher populations within suitable habitats throughout the Commonwealth and to minimize human conflicts and impacts on other wildlife populations.” The fisher management plan provides supporting objectives and strategies to achieve five species-specific goals related to population monitoring, habitat assessment, population enhancement, and development and implementation of a harvest management program. The plan also provides a comprehensive summary of fisher biology, historic and current status, population recovery, economic significance, public interest, and regional population and harvest management approaches. View the fisher plan at www.pgc.state.pa.us. http://www.pgc.state.pa.us
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