The effective recovery of rare and imperiled species depends on rigorous long-term monitoring designed to assess population trends across seasons. This is particularly true for species with poorly understood population dynamics (e.g., distribution, persistence, recruitment). Humboldt martens (Martes caurina humboldtensis), once presumed extinct, persist in isolated populations in coastal Oregon and northwestern California and are threatened by habitat loss and small population sizes. Despite recent protections and extensive survey efforts, key knowledge gaps remain regarding Humboldt marten survival and persistence across time. The Yurok Tribe Wildlife Department, in collaboration with state, federal, and academic partners, seeks to expand spatial and temporal coverage of surveying efforts. In collaboration with OSU, the department developed an improved hair-snare tube to enhance DNA-based individual identification. Currently, two years of a three-year spatial capture recapture monitoring program have been completed using remote cameras and hair snares across an extensive survey area on Tribal, private, and federal lands to generate robust estimates of Humboldt marten abundance and persistence. To date, we have identified 47 individuals (38M:9F) and recaptured 10 individuals. The results are aimed at directly informing adaptive management and conservation strategies for Humboldt martens in northwestern California.

Jackie Killam is a graduate student in Wildlife at Cal Poly Humboldt and a technician with the Yurok Tribe Wildlife Department. She earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and has worked with federal, contract, nonprofit, and state agencies across California, Alaska, Idaho, and Colorado. She has studied a range of wildlife species including birds (raptors), prairie dogs, coyotes, fishers, wolves, and now martens. Her research focuses on understanding the spatial ecology and population dynamics of carnivores through the use of innovative noninvasive monitoring techniques.