Fishers can cause anxiety in upstate New York.
The elusive, forest-dwelling mammals are often blamed for attacks on dogs and cats. But they rarely come after pets. There are scattered reports of fishers attacking — but not killing — smaller canines, while a New Hampshire study that examined the contents of 1,000 fisher stomachs in 1979 and 1980 found only one contained cat hair, suggesting the fear of fishers coming for your cats is at the very least an exaggeration.
Fishers are members of the mustelid, or weasel, family, along with marten, mink and otter. They have short legs and small ears and are more heavily furred than other weasels. Males weigh up to 15 pounds and are up to 47 inches long, while females weigh up to 7 pounds and are up to 37 inches long, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
Despite their reputation for eating turkey, fishers mostly eat small mammals such as squirrels and voles, followed by fruits, nuts, berries and finally deer, which fishers usually only scavenge. They can descend trees nose-first because they can rotate their back paws 180 degrees, giving them the proper grip for this feat, which aids in their ability to find food.
One thing fishers do not eat is fish. They’re also unrelated to cats, though they are sometimes known as “fisher cats.” Their name likely comes from early European settlers, who found they resembled the European polecat, sometimes referred to as the “fichet” or “fitche,” according to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Service.
Fishers reach sexual maturity at one year. They breed in March or April, but after about a month of maturation, the egg ceases development for up to 11 months, then resumes in late winter, before females give birth in March or April, usually in a hollowed-out part of a large tree.
The highest concentrations of fishers are found in the Northeast and the Midwest. The species was eradicated from all but the Adirondack region during the late 1800s and early 1900s due to trapping and loss of habitat as forests were chopped down for farming and logging operations, according to the DEC. In the second half of the 20th century, their populations began to rebound with the regulation of trapping and the expansion of protected forest land in the state. In the 1970s, the DEC reintroduced fishers to the Catskill Mountains.
Currently, fishers are found in all areas of New York other than Long Island. Observations and trapping data in the 2000s and 2010s found the highest concentrations were in the Capital Region and Tug Hill Plateau, an area west of the Adirondacks. High concentrations were also found in the eastern Catskills. Fishers are sometimes found on the edges of large upstate cities such as Rochester, Buffalo and Albany, according to the DEC.
But for those interested in seeing a fisher in the wild, good luck — the species is mostly nocturnal, avoids humans and is rarely seen.