A fisher was recently spotted on surveillance cameras at Cleveland Metroparks in Ohio, the first sighting of this medium-sized creature in over a century in the United States. Cleveland Metroparks shared the footage on social media, expressing excitement over the rare sighting. These animals are native to North American forests and had disappeared from Ohio in the mid-1800s, never having been documented in Europe, including Britain. The Ohio Division of Wildlife confirmed that this sighting is the first record of fishers in Cuyahoga County since their disappearance in the 1800s.
Considered a “Species of Special Interest” by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, fishers were eradicated from Ohio in the mid-1800s due to unregulated harvesting and habitat loss. The return of fishers and other previously extinct species like otters, bobcats, and trumpeter swans to Cleveland Metroparks highlights the success of conservation efforts and underscores the importance of maintaining healthy forests, wetlands, waterways, and natural areas.
Although commonly referred to as “fisher cats,” they are not felines but members of the weasel family. According to Scenic Hudson, fishers are solitary animals with a diet that includes fruit, reptiles, amphibians, birds, bird eggs, mushrooms, squirrels, and other small mammals.
