Pine marten spotted in Somerset for first time in 100 years

Pine martens haven't been seen in Somerset for more than 100 years.

But conservationists got a pleasant surprise, after one was spotted on their night vision camera.

The animal was seen in the Mendips by the team at the Patch Wilder project.

Staff were monitoring the 15 acres of grassland and woodland at the time, to see what animals were around.

Pine martens have an appearance similar to a stoat

But they certainly didn't expect to see a pine marten, as none have been officially released in the county.

This cheeky one even brushed it's tail along the front of the camera to make sure no one missed it.

The small mammals typically roam between one and 20km, so it's thought the pine marten could have travelled from another region nearby.

The New Forest, the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, and Dartmoor in Exeter are all places where the animals have recently been released.

Pine martens are around half a metre long and are known for their upright posture

As they need large areas of woodland to live in, ecologist Charlie Fayers thinks they would do well in Somerset.

As pine martens hunt grey squirrels, who are not native to the area, this could help the native red squirrels as there would be less competition.

The team said they could not believe it when they saw the video footage.

"They have a characteristic white bib but it is such a surprise to see one, it took me a good couple of watches of the video for it to sink in," Charlie added.