Characteristics of fruits used by the Japanese marten—a review

Abstract

Fifteen papers on the food habits of the Japanese marten (Martes melampus) were reviewed in order to assess which types of fruits martens prefer. A total of 97 species and 11 genera were listed. Among the 97 species, as many as 89 species were fleshy fruits. The fruit of Hovenia dulcis is morphologically a drupe, but the pedicle swells and tastes and smells sweet and thus functions as a “fleshy fruit”. The other 8 species were dry fruits. Among them, the fruits of Euonymus hamiltonianus and Celastrus orbiculatus contain “fleshy” seeds. Two capsules of Anacardiaceae contain high lipids. Fruits of 76 species (78.4%) are colorful and 70 species (72.2%) are small (< 10 mm in diameter), suggesting that these typical bird-dispersed fruits are also preferred by the marten. Large and dull-colored fruits included 3 species, and Actinidia arguta and H. dulcis showed high frequencies. The growth forms and the habitats seemed to be biased to lianas and forest-edge plants, respectively. This review showed that the marten fed on many small and colorful bird-dispersed fruits, as well as large and dull-colored fruits such as A. arguta and H. dulcis.