Japanese Marten

About this species

Weight

About 1–1.5kg

Diet

Fruit, insects, small mammals, birds and eggs

Habitat

Broad-leaved forest, valleys, plantations and open ground

The Japanese marten is an agile, partly arboreal mustelid with a long body, short legs and a fully furred tail. Adults weigh roughly 1–1.5 kg and are substantially heavier than Japanese weasels where both occur. Coat colour varies, so observers should rely on body proportions and other diagnostic characters rather than colour alone. The species is native chiefly to the Japanese archipelago; Korean catalogue occurrence should be interpreted cautiously and verified against current specimen records (Ohdachi et al. 2009; Animal Diversity Web).

Japanese martens use valleys and broad-leaved forest as well as conifer plantations and open land. Scat studies describe an opportunistic omnivore with marked seasonal shifts: fruit and berries are important from spring through autumn, insects increase in summer and autumn, and small mammals and birds are taken throughout the year. Because the opened ecological studies concern Japanese populations, these habits are presented as general species information rather than observations from Korea. A Korea-specific locality is not asserted without a supporting record (Tatara and Doi 1994, summarized by Animal Diversity Web).

Description: Wildlife of Korea guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com)