PRINCETON: Weasel or whatever, critter is deceased

RIGHT: Princeton's Animal Control Officer Mark Johnson with the weasel, mink or whatever he captured last weeek. The animal has since died. Staff photo by Kristine Snodgrass.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009
8:29 AM EST
By Kristine Snodgrass, Staff Writer

Whatever it was, it was one of the fiercest critters he’d ever picked up, Princeton Borough Animal Control Officer Mark Johnson said.

He received a call Thursday from a resident of Drakes Corner Road, located off Great Road, who reported she had caught an animal she’d never seen in her humane wire trap.

Mr. Johnson managed to get the weasel-like animal into his truck, but not without a struggle, he said.

”It’s one of the nastiest animals I’ve ever dealt with,” he said shortly after its capture Thursday. “I’d rather deal with a pit bull.”

The animal initially was identified as a fisher cat, but the state Division of Fish, Game & Wildlife thinks it could be a mink, Mr. Johnson. Neither species normally is found in central New Jersey though there were reports of fisher cat sightings in Hopewell two years ago.

Fisher cats are known for their bloodcurdling scream, Mr. Johnson said, which can be mistaken for a woman’s cry.

The animal was slated to be tagged and released, but it died in captivity, Mr. Johnson said. Its death has been attributed to stress induced by its capture, but an autopsy will be performed on the animal to determine its cause of death and exact species.

The fisher cat is known to travel up to 60 miles in search of food and normally has a home range of 10 to 20 square miles, according to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Web site. They are active year round, mostly at night and dusk.

Despite their name, the animals are not related to cats nor do they typically prey on cats or fish. They normally prey on snowshoe hare, porcupines, squirrels and small mammals such as mice and voles.

They typically are found in Alaska, Canada, northern Minnesota, upstate New York, northern New England, in the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming and the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, according to the Web site.

The animals have long, slender bodies and short legs like the related species of weasels, martens, minks and otters. Males are twice the size of females, and weigh between four and 12 pounds.

http://centraljersey.com/articles/2009/12/09/the_princeton_packet/news/doc4b1d7da56ef78415048015.txt

(Submitted by Andrew D. Gable)