New York mammals

Fisher in New York

Pekania pennanti

Native to New York S4 Apparently Secure in New York

Not listed as nonindigenous in New York by USGS NAS; native to its New York range.

IUCN Red List status

NE – Not Evaluated

Not yet assessed against IUCN Red List criteria.

Martes PennantiLive fisher clambering head-down on a tree trunk in summer foliageFisher (Pekania pennanti)
Photo: Matthew Zalewski · CC BY-SA 4.0Martes PennantiPhoto: christine123 · CC BY 4.0Live fisher clambering head-down on a tree trunk in summer foliagePhoto: David Weisenbeck · CC BY 4.0Fisher (Pekania pennanti)

Fisher in New York, by the numbers

Common in New York 20th most recorded of 102 mammals logged in New York

933 occurrence records
560 with iNaturalist photos
Jun 29, 2026 Last seen in New York

Records from 2000–2026.

933 total records count every New York occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 918 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Fisher in New York

Most sightings fall in November to March.

918 New York occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly New York records (table)
MonthRecords
January99
February113
March123
April64
May62
June51
July44
August39
September47
October57
November132
December87

Monthly fisher occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in New York, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in New York, with recorded sightings peaking in November–March.

Occurrence map

Where Fisher has been recorded in New York

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 New York records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Moreau Lake State Park 5
Letchworth State Park 4
Green Lakes State Park 4
Essex Chain Lakes Complex 4
Big Indian Wilderness 3
Hammond Hill State Forest 3
Suny Esf Exp Station 3
State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry 3

Protected places with the most fisher sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in New York

CountyRecords
Ulster County 256
Saratoga County 72
Rensselaer County 68
Franklin County 64
Onondaga County 58
Tompkins County 48
Essex County 26
Albany County 24
St. Lawrence County 21
Monroe County 18
Greene County 18
Broome County 16
39 other counties 244

The complete county distribution, spread across 51 New York counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Fishers were trapped to near-extirpation in New York by the early 1900s and only recovered through statewide harvest restrictions and forest regrowth. With 933 records split fairly evenly between iNaturalist (560) and GBIF (787), this is one of the most thoroughly documented species in this rank tier despite a modest S4 NatureServe rank. Adirondack Park’s 6 logged sightings anchor the deep forest habitat fishers favor.

Records peak in November (132) and again across February-March (99 and 113), together tracking late-winter breeding activity and fall dispersal of young animals; records dip to their lowest in August (39), consistent with reduced visibility as this elusive predator moves through denser summer forest cover.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Fisher in other states

Martes Pennanti
Full species profile Fisher Pekania pennanti Size 75–95 cm2.5–3.1 ft Weight 3.5–6 kg7.7–13.2 lb Lifespan 7 yr View the full profile

More mammals in New York in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"