Project aims to help keep pine martens safe near busy roads

A PROJECT to help create safer road crossing opportunities for pine martens is underway in Devon.

- ATHWENNA IRONS

As part of the Two Moors Pine Marten Project, 15 pine martens were released into eastern Dartmoor last September, with the reintroduced animals dispersing across South Devon, including the Haldon Forest area.

Pine martens have large territories and move quickly through the landscape covering large distances, which can bring them into contact with roads and fast-moving traffic - the highest risk factor for this species in the UK.

To understand where the returning pine martens cross the road network, and in an effort to protect the newly reintroduced species, National Highways, Devon Wildlife Trust, Animex International and Devon County Council have installed cameras in locations around the A38 and A380, and are advising drivers to be wary of animals crossing around the Haldon Forest area.

Conservationists at Devon Wildlife Trust recently celebrated the first births of pine marten kits in a pioneering reintroduction project which has returned the species to the South West of England, after a 100-year absence.

Sadly, though, a small number of pine marten deaths have been recorded on Devon's roadsides in recent months, prompting action to monitor the animals’ crossing movements.