Wild & Weird New Jersey

A noble creature.

An ignoble predator, kind of like a bulked-up wolverine with a WWF-style steroids-fueled temper. The sort of "pet" I imagine Nancy Pelosi would have back at the vineyard she and her spouse run, to sic on their their employees when they ask to have a union,

"A noble creature." Until some night when you hear the scream and find "Fluffy" shredded in your driveway. But not to worry too much -- these creatures are immensely shy and seldom seen outside large tracts of deep woods. In rural areas where new developments are abutting the woods, pets can be at risk as the Martens accustomize easily to humans and all the wondrous goodies they bring to the table. Their cries are straight out of Stephen King.

So thats what they look like. We have them in Vermont and the locals always warn us to avoid them.

"kind of like a bulked-up wolverine "

Actually, wolverines are about 4 times larger than a fisher.

Not unlike the rat like qualities of Speaker Delay or the cow like qualities of Speaker Hastert. Speaker Pelosi has brought bear like credibility to the position and is a fitting description for someone from the fine state of California. We were talking about wild life, correct?

MellonBrush, I thank you for correcting me. Wolverines must be pretty doggoned big. I've never even met someone from Michigan who's actually seen one.

Mikey, I was referring to Nancy's pet, not her. Missed the gist again, eh, laserboy? But in her babushka last week in Syria (that was no hijab, that was the Speaker of the House!, as the joke goes) she reminded me of the wolf dressing up to try and fool Red Riding Hood. Similarly, Harry Reid reminds me of a grouchy bear, and "Chuck" Schumer (who really called him "Chuck" when he was growing up, I wonder) has all the canned insincerity of a jackal.

Now you have a nice day watching "Animal Planet," laserlad.

This is not a political thread. You should take it to the forum.

Lasermike: You should take it to the bridge.

{{{Where's that confounded bridge?}}}}

a funny thing happened on the way to the forum

Where in New Jersey was the ferocious fisher fleetingly photographed?

Where in New Jersey was the ferocious fisher fleetingly photographed?

Posted by appletony | April 10, 2007 3:35 PM

I think he was sighted buying a tuna sub at the 'Crowd Around Deli'.

Mikey, I made an observation, while talking about wildlife (as opposed to a "wild life"). You in turn tried to up the ante with a partisan response which you felt was witty. I in turn disagreed, and referenced (somewhat vaguely, I admit) the old "Pogo" comic strip. So calm down, and, as you yourself suggested, give vent to as much spleen as you can muster on the forums.

MellonBrush, I am still trying to wrap my brain around the concept of a 50-60 lb. wolverine, based on the comparison you earlier suggested. Would you know if they'd eat flowers-munching deer, too?

Cathar, I first heard about wolverines as a child in East Orange around 1962. I was fascinated by the idea of an animal, about the size of a dog, which could kick the ass or intimidate just about any other animal in the forest.

This idea was appealing to me, being a smallish white kid in a sometimes hostile environment. I found at an early age that a good snarl and show of teeth would usually be enough to dissuade a lazy predator from making a meal out of me.

I was told that pound for pound wolverines were indeed one of the most ferocious animals on earth.

Being omnivores, I suppose they will eat anything that they can find, or kill, perhaps even a small deer.

cathar was that a reference to "We have met the enemy... and he is us"?

State Street ("that great street"), it was, rather, a generalized reference to Walt Kelly's drawing of Okeefeenokee swamp critters with recognizable faces. (Though I no longer recall what Senator McCarthy was cast as.)

I knew Selby Kelly, who was Walt's nurse-then-spouse, a bit back in the 70's through my own ladyfriend who handled her banking. (She also tried to continue/revive the strip for a time after Walt Kelly died.) Nice woman, we'd chat and I'd praise her spouse, and she'd go home and recount my praise and would sometimes subsequently bring me hand-written notes from her ill hub thanking me. She also was the person who first steered me to Costello's and its marvelous cartoon-soaked walls.

"Us" was very touched by her and his kindness, by the way.

I saw what looked like an otter in Verona Park Lake on Sunday. Could have been a beaver, but tail looked sleeker. I guess we'll know soon enough if the trees start getting eaten. Beavers are getting very widespread and they can be a real nuisance. Anyway, an otter pair would be very cool- you could watch them for hours.

richs, more likely you saw a muskrat rather than an otter. They are fairly large and have a long slender tail. Not nearly as interesting as spotting an otter which would be a real coup in NJ.

I'd like to thank everyone for their interest in the glorious fisher. I got the picture in Stokes State Forest. I previously found porcupine quills and trees with the bark chewed off nearby. Fishers and Porcupines...perfect for New Jersey!

I was very happy about the reintroduction of the fisher into New Jersey. Over the past 10 years, our state has cleaned up its waters and done alot to improve the enviornment. It is only the start. When I read the fisher articles by Charles Kontos, it gave me an even more positive outlook for the future of New Jersey.

I saw a fisher in the woods a couple of weeks ago. It took me a while to figure out what it was - I thought it might be a wolverine. I've never seen anything like it before. I was driving slowly on a back road (looking for whitetail deer) in Susquehanna County in northern Pennsylvania.