Rare Wildlife In North Yorkshire

As I have spoken about in previous posts, I have been using my cameras to try and find and confirm sightings of a mammal that is so rare that officially it s recorded as absent. On a previous occasion in some private woods I did see tracks that could have been made by this animal but were to degraded to be clear and there were other animals that could have made them.

On that occasion the main target species was not observed. Part of the difficulty being the habits of the animal are different and setting up a (Camera) trap for one species could miss the other. Also at the time I did not have Infra Red equipment so I was limited to what I could do.

Therefore it was tantalising to obtain information of another sighting via an independent source in an area close to the first location. Upon investigation it was far better habitat to find the animal so I have been camping out in the hope of filming this creature. Not the wryest of occupations nor the most comfortable but I kept vigil.

I baited the area with foods that would attract the animal and set up one camera so that it could take a series of still every few seconds in a spot that was the most likely path the animal would take. While I settled down to wait and film the animal if it came.

I have a real admiration for the professionals, but I don't have the luxury of assistants to aid me and I also have to go out at times to change batteries, tapes and memory cards. So I was aware that I could stop myself from seeing my quarry at those times I would have to move. Therefore while having two cameras located would increase my chances, was it that I was decreasing them by moving about.

Well on one night I left the stills camera alone, but when I went to collect it it had been overturned by possibly a badger, but the jam sandwiches left as bait had gone. A check of the images showed that the camera had recorded many images of the ground and some of the bait before the tripod had been up ended but none of the animal.

This continued in much the same vain until I finally saw my first Pine Martin. I was just changing tapes when it appeared and with the best will in the world I could not get the new tape in quickly in the dark. In fact I was trying to put it in the wrong way round.

I am not the only people trying to get the Martins on film as I learned that the BBC are lucking out in the same area as are the naturalists who are trying to garner photographic evidence to prove they have extended their range. So while officially the Pine Martin is not in North Yorkshire, but we know different.