It’s been around 100 years since the fisher disappeared from the area around Cleveland, Ohio. This year, the small predator seems to have made a comeback, with one being caught on camera in Cleveland Metroparks.
Cleveland Metroparks Wildlife Management Coordinator Andy Burmesch identified the rare sighting, according to an Instagram post from the parks.
“The Ohio Division of Wildlife confirmed that this sighting in Cleveland Metroparks is the first record in Cuyahoga County since the species originally disappeared in the 1800s,” it said.
According to the National Park Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the National Park Service, the fisher (Pekania pennanti) was a “prime target” for trappers in 1800s due to its prized dark brown fur. It’s part of the mustelid family, which includes weasels and mink.
“As the story goes, a logger would be felling trees, and they’d see a fisher and they would just quit their job and chase it because that one hide was about the same as a whole year’s salary,” explained Jason Ransom, a wildlife biologist with the National Park Service at North Cascades National Park.
These small creatures might not seem like “predators” at first glance. They might even look like a common squirrel or rabbit, the National Park Foundation said. However, they do have “predatory prowess,” with agile limbs for climbing, burrowing and hunting.
Mustelids also play important roles in ecosystems, according to research about weasels out of North Carolina State University that Audacy reported on this March. Some scientists have argued that they are an ideal species for gauging the impact of climate change.
Cleveland Metroparks noted that fishers are listed as “Species of Special Interest” by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. In Ohio, loss of habitat also contributed to its disappearance.
According to the parks, the recent sighting is “tremendously exciting.”
Fishers and members of the mustelid family can be hard to track, according to North Carolina State University. To study weasels, researchers from the school lured them with snacks, including chunks of meat covered in salmon oil.
Other species that had once faded from the local landscape near Cleveland have also been making a comeback, the parks added – these include otters, bobcats and trumpeter swans. Their return is a “result of conservation efforts and emphasize the importance of our healthy forests, wetlands, waterways and natural areas in Cleveland Metroparks,” said the Instagram post.