Pine martens ‘doing well’ after reintroduction to Dartmoor and Exmoor

Pine martens reintroduced to the South West are thriving and have begun breeding, according to conservationists involved in a major restoration project.

A total of 34 animals have been released across Dartmoor and Exmoor over the past two years as part of the Two Moors Pine Marten Project, led by Devon Wildlife Trust and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

15 pine martens were released on Dartmoor in autumn 2024, followed by a further 19 on Exmoor in autumn 2025. The project is a partnership involving organisations including Forestry England, the National Trust, Somerset Wildlife Trust, Woodland Trust, and the Dartmoor and Exmoor National Park Authorities.

The species, once native to the region, had been absent for more than a century after being hunted to extinction. Roughly the size of a small cat, pine martens are agile tree climbers and play an important ecological role as omnivores, feeding on fruits, small mammals and even grey squirrels.

Tracking collars fitted to the animals have allowed conservationists to monitor their movements since release. Tracey Hamston, the project’s lead, said the early results were encouraging.

“The collars have meant we can track the animals’ movements. The results show that some pine martens stayed close to where they were released, but others travelled some distance, in a few cases more than 20 miles.

“The Dartmoor pine martens seem now to have settled forming their own individual territories. Some of the Exmoor animals still seem to be mobile but we’d expect most to settle and establish a territory soon.

“It’s been amazing to see where the pine martens have travelled since their release. We can see that they’ve been thoroughly exploring the landscape before settling into their new woodland homes.”

The collars are designed to fall off after six months, with monitoring now continuing through remote wildlife cameras installed in woodlands.

In a significant milestone, cameras captured footage last July of a female pine marten with three kits in a Dartmoor woodland - the first confirmed evidence of successful breeding since the reintroduction.

Tracey Hamston added: “This was the news we were waiting for – proof that the pine martens have established themselves and are doing well.

“This year’s kits should be being born on both Dartmoor and Exmoor around now. We hope to see evidence of this on our cameras when the kits become more active in May and June.”

Abby Parravani, Forest Planner at Forestry England, said the return of the species would benefit woodland ecosystems.

“Forestry England is proud to be a partner in the Two Moors Pine Marten project. The encouraging results from collar tracking and camera trap monitoring are hugely rewarding for all involved in the project. As omnivores and predators, pine martens fulfil an important role in woodland ecosystems, helping to increase the resilience of forests, so we are thrilled that this native species is once again establishing in woodlands in the South West.”

The project team is now calling on the public to help monitor the animals as they spread across the landscape. Sightings, including photos or video, can be reported via email at pinemartens@devonwildlifetrust.org.

Ali North, the project’s Exmoor Field Officer, said: “Pine martens are a highly mobile species and so they have kept us very busy trying to keep track of them.

“We’re excited to be moving into the next phase of our monitoring, using camera traps to catch a glimpse into their elusive woodland antics. We hope many landowners will want to get involved in our newly launched woodland citizen science survey to help us track their distribution over time.”

Exact release locations are being kept confidential to protect the animals from disturbance, but conservationists say their successful return marks a major step in restoring native wildlife to the South West.

More information about the project is available at www.twomoorspinemartens.org.