Martes foina (Erxleben, 1777) Pinel, 1792
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.5714044 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5714069 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/038F87D4-CA5A-FFB4-CFF7-3AFAFCF7FB31 |
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treatment provided by |
Conny |
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scientific name |
Martes foina |
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Stone Marten
French: Fouine / German: Steinmarder / Spanish: Garduna
Other common names: Beech Marten
Taxonomy. Mustela foina Erxleben, 1777 View in CoL ,
Germany.
Up to fifteen subspecies have been proposed, but a taxonomic revision is needed.
Distribution. Mainland C & S Europe, Caucasus, Middle East, C Asia to Mongolia, C & SW China, and N Myanmar. Introduced to Ibiza I ( Spain), but now extirpated, and to USA (Wisconsin). View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 40-54 cm, tail 22-30 cm; weight 1.1-2.3 kg. The Stone Marten has a long body, short limbs, and a bushy tail about half of the head and body length. The pelage ranges from grayish brown to dark brown, with a conspicuous white or pale yellow neck and throat patch, which often splits into two parts that extend to the anterior part of the legs. The tail and legs are darker than the back. The upperlip has a medial rhinarial groove. There are two pairs of mammae. Dental formula: 13/3, C1/1,P 4/4, M 1/2 = 38. The third upper premolar has slightly convex outer edges (they are concave in the European Pine Marten.
Habitat. Stone Martens are found in forests and open and rocky areas,at elevations up to 4000 m. They also occur in fragmented forests, hedgerows, and cultivated areas, and in close proximity to humans. They are generally found in more open environments than other marten species and appear to avoid conifer forests. In a fragmented agricultural landscape, Stone Martens were found to prefer areas with wood and scrub vegetation and watercourses with continuous vegetation along their verges; they tended to avoid arable land.
Food and Feeding. The diet consists of rodents, birds, eggs, reptiles, amphibians,insects, fruits, and berries. In France, voles (Microtus sp.) make up to 30-55% of the total diet; there is strong seasonality, with microtines eaten more often in winter and spring. In the Swiss Jura, mammals are the main prey, representing 37-9% ofall food items; Water Voles (Arvicola terrestris) were found in 90-4% of scats during peak vole numbers. In central Italy, fruit and berries are the staple diet, but mammals and birds are also important; the diet varies seasonally in relation to resource availability, with a predominance of fruit in autumn and insects in summer. In east-central Italy, the winter diet is almost completely frugivorous; fruit represents 84% of the total volume in the diet, with a 55% occurrence. Berries from juniperus (42-2%, Juniperus sp.) and from sloe (29-7%, Prunus spinosa) are the most common food items. In south-eastern Romania, birds (45-2% of the biomass) and mammals (36-1%) predominate in the diet; reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fruits are supplementary food. In the Caucasus, the diet is 85% murine rodents during the summer; vegetable matter forms a major part of the late summer and early fall food in some areas.
Activity patterns. Primarily nocturnal and crepuscular. Den/restsites are inside rock crevices, stone heaps, hollow trees, abandoned burrows, and in buildings.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. Stone Martens are solitary. They are good climbers, but rarely go high into trees. Home ranges vary between 12-211 ha, being larger in summer and smaller during winter. The home ranges of males are generally larger than those of females, and adult ranges are larger than immature animals. In central Italy, radio-telemetry revealed intra-sexual territoriality; males travelled longer distances than females, although home range sizes did not differ significantly between the sexes.
Breeding. Mating occurs in summer, but because of delayed implantation of the fertlized eggs into the uterus, births do not occur until the following spring. The overall gestation lasts 230-275 days, although true gestation is c. 30 days. Littersize typically is three to four, but may reach up to eight. Sexual maturity may be attained at 15-27 months.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern in The IUCN Red List. The Stone Marten is considered common throughout most of Europe and Asia. It is hunted for its pelt, but this does not have the same quality of the European Pine Marten.
Bibliography. Baghli et al. (2002), Canivenc et al. (1981), Feller (1993a, 1993b), Francis (2008), Genovesi & Boitani (1997), Genovesi, Secchi & Boitani (1996), Genovesi, Sinibaldi & Boitani (1997), Lodé (1994), Lopez-Martin et al. (1992), Michelat et al. (2001), Padial et al. (2002), Pandolfi et al. (1996), Posluszny et al. (2007), Roberts (1977), Romanowski & Lesinski (1991), Rondinini & Boitani (2002), Sacchi & Meriggi (1995), Stone & Cook (2002), Stroganov (1969), Virgos et al. (2000), Wozencraft (2005, 2008).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
