Overview
- The Ohio Division of Wildlife confirmed that a fisher recorded in Cleveland Metroparks is the first verified sighting in Cuyahoga County since local extirpation in the 1800s.
- Cleveland Metroparks says the animal was captured on a trail camera in January and identified by wildlife coordinator Andy Burmesch before the footage was shared over the weekend.
- A state furbearer monitoring report tallied 56 fisher sightings across eight Ohio counties between 2013 and 2024, though this is the first verified record within the park system.
- Park officials attribute the return of fishers and other once-extirpated species to conservation efforts that have improved forests, wetlands and waterways.
- The species has also rebounded in Pennsylvania, with recovery linked to natural expansion in the 1970s and reintroduction programs in the 1990s.