THE wildlife world is celebrating after one of Britain’s rarest creatures was confirmed to be living on the North York Moors.

The first ever images of a pine marten living in Yorkshire have been captured after a four-year effort to discover whether unconfirmed sightings of the elusive creature were true.

A single male was captured on a wildlife camera trap on Forestry Commission land – the first confirmed record of pine marten in the area for 24 years.

The Yorkshire Pine Marten Project, run by non-profit social enterprise NatureSpy in partnership with the Forestry Commission, uses wildlife camera traps which monitor a particular area, round-the clock and trigger when an animal passes in front of them, taking a picture or video.

Pine martens are vigilant, mysterious and arboreal, making them near impossible to track and monitor without the aid of remote technology and baiting to tempt them down to the forest floor.

Mainly restricted to the Scottish Highlands, they are the second-rarest carnivorous mammal in the country after the Scottish wildcat.

The last confirmed pine marten record in Yorkshire was in 1993 when a skull was recovered. Since then there have been a number of possible sightings and reports of pine marten in the forests in Yorkshire.

Recent evidence from DNA testson droppings confirmed their presence in Northumberland but previous searches by other organisations proved inconclusive.

NatureSpy’s project co-ordinator Ed Snell said: “To finally prove pine marten presence in Yorkshire is a massive achievement for everyone involved.

“It’s so exciting to plan the next stage of the project and aid whatever populations we may have here.”

Forestry Commission ecologist Cath Bashforth added: “Supporting this project has been exciting and to discover they are living within our forests after so many years is fantastic.”

The next step for the project will be to apply a more scientific approach to the study – collecting DNA samples from individuals, estimating population numbers, looking at habitat preferences and producing habitat management proposals.

A fundraising initiative has been launched to raise funds for additional resources such as hair tubes and monitoring equipment to embark on the next phase of the project.

To keep up to date with the search for pine martens in Yorkshire, visit NatureSpy.org