Mention Ibiza's wildlife and you're more likely to picture Bora Bora or DC10 than some khaki-shorted naturalist striding about the forest. However Ibiza's version of David Attenborough have been on the trail of a small furry creature that was thought to be extinct on the island. The Beech (or Stone) Marten (Martes Foina) was believed to have died out here some time in the mid 70's. However a dead marten – they look a bit like stoats or weasels - was found by the roadside 10 years ago.
The naturalists have so far spent 880 days trying to find a live specimen in the Marten's preferred forest habitat. Their modus operandi is to set camera traps with tasty bait – when an animal
comes within range it sets off the camera – but so far they've only manages to capture images of mostly dogs, cats, and mice!
The search has thrown up some excellent photos of one of Ibiza's other rare animals – the Genet (Geneta geneta isabelae) a rarely seen cat-like creature which is on the list of animals whose
existence is considered to be 'vulnerable.'
See Google Image Search for pictures of the Genet.
Despite not finding a Marten, the naturalists are happy that they now know more about the Genet and also what cats get up to while the rest of us are in bed!