Activity patterns of American Martens, Martes americana, Snowshoe Hares, Lepus americanus and Red Squirrels, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, in westcentral Montana

Abstract

We investigated winter activity patterns of American Martens, Martes americana, Snowshoe Hares, Lepus americanus, and Red Squirrels, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus, in westcentral Montana between November 1994 and March 1995 using dual-sensor remote cameras. One hundred percent of Snowshoe Hare (n = 25) observations occurred at night while Martens (n = 85) exhibited random activity during diel and nocturnal hours and Red Squirrels (n = 22) were diurnal. Marten activity coincided with the nocturnal and diurnal microtines and diurnal Red Squirrels though they could take advantage of the strictly nocturnal Snowshoe Hares.