Pacific martens hunt through dense, old-growth conifer canopy rather than open ground, chasing squirrels and voles both on the forest floor and up into the branches, and Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks carry the overwhelming majority of Wyoming’s named record, 48 sightings each, against just a handful across the state’s national forests and wilderness areas.
Records build through summer to an August peak, 18 times the March low, tracking the season when this forest specialist is most active and detectable before deep snow limits both marten movement and observer access. NatureServe ranks the species S3, vulnerable, in Wyoming, tied to its dependence on the old-growth structure that logging and fire have reduced across much of its range.
Full species profile
