Forests, Fish and Wildlife: Furbearers

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Furbearers

The classification of animals as furbearers is not a biological one, but an economic one - it is a group of animals whose pelts have a commercial value. They are a diverse group: the beaver, muskrat and squirrel are rodents, relatives of rats and mice; the raccoon has no close relatives; the fox and coyote are sort of wild dogs; and the mink, weasel and skunk are members of the weasel family.

The weasel family (Mustelidae) is one of particular interest. Some members of this family which used to inhabit the province have not been seen here for a considerable time. Fisher, marten, and otter were extirpated during the 19th century through unregulated trapping and destruction of their habitat. The Canada lynx, a member of the cat family (Felidae), was also extirpated (made locally extinct) in the 1800s.

Prince Edward Island is famous for its ranched silver foxes which were first raised by Dalton and Oulton in the Alberton area of our province, in the early 1900s.

In 1981, the wild fur industry on the Island was worth about one quarter of a million dollars to some 600 Island trappers. Today, it brings in about $100,000 to about 100 licenced trappers.

This information has been taken from website "Forests, Fish and Wildlife"
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