Pine marten presence 'almost doubles' in Northern Ireland

Experts say this is good news for red squirrels too as they have adapted to live alongside these native predators, unlike their non-native counterparts

A 2022 survey of pine martens, red squirrels, and grey squirrels — carried out across 218 woodlands, found that pine martens were present in almost double the number of sites compared to the previous survey in 2017

The presence of pine martens in Northern Ireland has almost doubled, according to a new report.

The elusive native mammal had been greatly reduced due to habitat loss and persecution in the 19th century.