Worked stream surveys on the N coast of Cali in the 90's. One of the wildlife guys on that crew worked with fishers. I got to help him release a trapped one after working it up for his grad study.
Fast forward a few years, on my way to work in NW PA. Gravel road about 6 miles to get to work from the hiway. Something crosses the road in front of me, headed toward the river. Too small for river otter which aren't all that to fishers, too big for a mink. I say to self, that's a friggen fisher, but I don't think they have them here.
Fast fwd a few months, I'm at a conference with PA G&F, talk to the local guy. Told him I think I saw a fisher, and described my experience in Cali with them. He immediately gets very excited and asks just where did I see it. I gave him location. He said that's cool, we released some about 20 miles away a few years back to help control porcupine populations, we didn't know they'd spread so far.
Lotta porkies there, and a lot of woods for them to use. Food and habitat will do it every time.
PA is slap covered UP in fishers. The entire state.
The PGC re-introduced them in the early or mid '90's to the northern tier.................... McKean, Elk, Potter, Tioga counties. Maybe a few others. But at the same time, fishers were migrating on their own into SW PA from West Virginia and Maryland.
They're friggin' everywhere, now.
Otters are expanding pretty rapidly throughout the state, too. Mink and weasels are our only other mustelids.............except an occasional rumor of a pine marten.
Looking out the window on any given day, it's usually just the garden variety of whitetails, turkeys, cottontails, gray or fox squirrels and groundhogs. Lotta black bears around............some DAMNED big ones..........see a couple a year in the daylight. And for the last 15 or so years we've had an awful lot of bald eagles residing and nesting nearby. It's pretty common to look up and see old White Head.
