Nilgiri marten - Revision history

Mohit8811: add page additionally and improved wording for clarity

2025-11-25T04:30:39Z

add page additionally and improved wording for clarity

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:00, 25 November 2025
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	{{Short description\|Species of ~~carnivore~~}}		{{Short description\|Species of carnivoran}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=January 2020}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=January 2020}}
	{{Use Indian English\|date=January 2020}}		{{Use Indian English\|date=January 2020}}
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	\| status = VU		\| status = VU
	\| status_system = IUCN3.1		\| status_system = IUCN3.1
	\| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn \|title=''Martes gwatkinsii'' \|last1=Mudappa \|first1=D. \|last2=Jathana \|first2=D. \|last3=Raman \|first3=T. R. S. \|name-list-style=amp \|date=2015 \|~~volume~~=~~2015~~ \|~~page~~=e.T12847A86161239}}</ref>		\| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn \|title=''Martes gwatkinsii'' \|last1=Mudappa \|first1=D. \|last2=Jathana \|first2=D. \|last3=Raman \|first3=T. R. S. \|name-list-style=amp \|date=2015 \|errata=2016 \|article-number=e.T12847A86161239 \|doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T12847A45199025.en \|access-date=9 March 2022}}</ref>
			\| status2 = CITES_A3
			\| status2_system = CITES
			\| status2_ref = <ref>{{cite Species+ \|id=7173 \|title=''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield, 1851 \|access-date=25 November 2025}}</ref>
	\| genus = Martes		\| genus = Martes
	\| species = gwatkinsii		\| species = gwatkinsii
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	}}		}}

	The '''Nilgiri marten''' (''Martes gwatkinsii'') is the only [[marten]] species native to southern [[India]]. It lives in the hills of the [[Nilgiris (mountains)\|Nilgiris]] and parts of the [[Western Ghats]]. With only around a thousand members left it is listed as [[Vulnerable species\|~~Vulnerable~~]] on the [[IUCN Red List]].<ref name=iucn/>		The '''Nilgiri marten''' ('''''Martes gwatkinsii''''') is the only [[marten]] species native to southern [[India]]. It lives in the hills of the [[Nilgiris (mountains)\|Nilgiris]] and parts of the [[Western Ghats]]. With only around a thousand members left it is listed as [[Vulnerable species\|vulnerable]] on the [[IUCN Red List]].<ref name=iucn/>

	==~~Description~~==		== Taxonomy ==
	[[~~File:Nilgiri Marten (Martes gwatkinsii)~~.~~jpg~~\|~~thumb~~\|~~left~~\|~~Two Nilgiri martens~~ in ~~[[Pampadum Shola National Park]]]]~~		The Nilgiri marten was described by [[Thomas Horsfield]] based on a skin in the museum of the East India Company; it is named after the collector Reynolds Gwatkins.<ref>{{cite book \|last1=Horsfield \|first1=Thomas \|title=Catalogue of the Mammalia in the Museum of the Hon. East-India Company \|year=1851 \|location=London \|publisher=Printed by J. & H. Cox \|pages=99–101 \|doi=10.5962/bhl.title.32671 \|doi-access=free \|oclc=1109424 \|ol=243736W \|ol-access=free}}</ref>
	The Nilgiri marten is deep brown from head to rump, with the forequarters being almost reddish, with a bright throat ranging in colour from yellow to orange. It has a prominent frontal [[wikt:concave\|concavity]] and is larger than the [[yellow-throated marten]].<ref name=Prater>{{cite book \|last=Prater \|first=S. H. \|author-link=Stanley Henry Prater \|title=The Book of Indian Animals \|publisher=Bombay Natural History Society, Oxford University Press \|location=Mumbai \|year=2005 \|orig-~~year~~=1971 \|edition=3rd }}</ref> It is about {{~~convert~~\|55-65\|cm~~\|abbr=on~~}} long from head to vent and has a tail of {{~~convert~~\|40-45\|cm~~\|abbr=on~~}}. It weighs about {{~~convert~~\|2.1\|kg~~\|abbr=on~~}}.<ref name="Hussain1999">{{cite journal \|last=Hussain \|first=S. A. \|author-link=S. A. Hussain \|year=1999 \|title=Mustelids, Viverrids and Herpestids of India: Species Profile and Conservation Status \|url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n6 \|journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas ~~\|publisher=[[Wildlife Institute of India]] \|publication-place=Dehradun~~ \|volume=2 \|issue=2 \|pages=1–38 ~~\|issn=0972-088X~~}}</ref>{{rp\|6}}
			== Characteristics ==
			The Nilgiri marten is deep brown from head to rump, with the forequarters being almost reddish, with a bright throat ranging in colour from yellow to orange. It has a prominent frontal [[wikt:concave\|concavity]] and is larger than the [[yellow-throated marten]].<ref name=Prater>{{cite book \|last=Prater \|first=S. H. \|author-link=Stanley Henry Prater \|title=The Book of Indian Animals \|publisher=Bombay Natural History Society, Oxford University Press \|location=Mumbai \|year=2005 \|orig-date=1971 \|edition=3rd}}</ref>
			It is about {{cvt\|55-65\|cm}} long from head to vent and has a tail of {{cvt\|40-45\|cm}}. It weighs about {{cvt\|2.1\|kg}}.<ref name="Hussain1999">{{cite journal \|last=Hussain \|first=S. A. \|author-link=S. A. Hussain \|year=1999 \|title=Mustelids, Viverrids and Herpestids of India: Species Profile and Conservation Status \|url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n6 \|journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas \|volume=2 \|issue=2 \|pages=1–38}}</ref>{{rp\|6}}

	==Distribution and habitat==		==Distribution and habitat==
	The Nilgiri marten mainly inhabits the [[shola~~\|shola grassland~~]] and [[South Western Ghats montane rain ~~forests\|high altitude evergreen~~ forests]], and occasionally the adjacent [[South Western Ghats ~~moist deciduous forests\|mid-altitude~~ moist deciduous forests]] and commercial plantations, that span the [[Western Ghats]] in the [[South India]]n states of [[Karnataka]], [[Kerala]], and [[Tamil Nadu]]. The ~~marten's English common name is derived from the~~ [[Nilgiri Hills]] ~~that~~ form the center of its range, but sightings have been reported ~~as far north as~~ [[Charmadi~~\|Charmadi Ghat~~]] and ~~as far south as~~ the [[Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary\|Neyyar]] and [[Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary\|Peppara Wildlife Sanctuaries]].<ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Christopher \|first1=G. \|last2=Jayson \|first2=E. A. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=1996 \|title=Sightings of Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) at Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary and Silent Valley National Park, Kerala, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 ~~\|format=PDF~~ \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=15 \|pages=3–4 ~~\|issn=1019-5041~~ \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232855/http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last=Madhusudan \|first=M. D. \|author-link=Mysore Doreswamy Madhusudan \|year=1995 \|title=Sighting of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'') at Eravikulam National Park, Kerala, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 ~~\|format=PDF~~ \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=13 \|pages=6–7 ~~\|issn=1019-5041~~ \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419231854/http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Gokula \|first1=V. \|last2=Ramachandran \|first2=N. K. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=1996 \|title=A record of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) in Upper Bhavani \|url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbombay931996bomb/page/82/mode/1up \|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society \|volume=93 \|issue=1 \|page=82 ~~\|issn=0006-6982~~}}</ref><ref name="Mudappa1999">{{cite journal \|last=Mudappa \|first=D. \|year=1999 \|title=Lesser Known Carnivores of the Western Ghats \|url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n85 \|journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas \|publisher=[[Wildlife Institute of India]] \|~~publication-~~place=Dehradun \|volume=2 \|issue=2 \|pages=65–70 ~~\|issn=0972-088X~~}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last=Balakrishnan \|first=P. \|year=2005 \|title=Recent sightings and habitat characteristics of the endemic Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in Western Ghats, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 ~~\|format=PDF~~ \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=33 \|pages=14–16 ~~\|issn=1019-5041~~ \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232550/http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Krishna \|first1=K. \|last2=Karnad \|first2=D. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=2010 \|title=New records of the Nilgiri marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in the Western Ghats, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 ~~\|format=PDF~~ \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=43 \|pages=23–27 ~~\|issn=1019-5041~~ \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419233345/http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live~~}}</ref>~~		[[File:Nilgiri Marten (Martes gwatkinsii).jpg\|thumb\|Two Nilgiri martens in [[Pampadum Shola National Park]]]]
	~~[[File:Martes gwatkinsii Nilgiri Marten crossing the road in Anaimalai hills collage.jpg\|thumb\|center\|upright=2.5\|Photomontage of a Nilgiri marten crossing the road in the [[Anaimalai Hills]]]]~~		The Nilgiri marten mainly inhabits the [[shola]] grasslands and [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests]], and occasionally the adjacent [[South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests]] and commercial plantations, that span the [[Western Ghats]] in the [[South India]]n states of [[Karnataka]], [[Kerala]] and [[Tamil Nadu]]. The [[Nilgiri Hills]] form the center of its range, but sightings have also been reported in [[Charmadi]] Ghat and in the [[Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary\|Neyyar]] and [[Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary\|Peppara Wildlife Sanctuaries]].<ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Christopher \|first1=G. \|last2=Jayson \|first2=E. A. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=1996 \|title=Sightings of Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) at Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary and Silent Valley National Park, Kerala, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=15 \|pages=3–4 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232855/http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last=Madhusudan \|first=M. D. \|author-link=Mysore Doreswamy Madhusudan \|year=1995 \|title=Sighting of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'') at Eravikulam National Park, Kerala, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=13 \|pages=6–7 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419231854/http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Gokula \|first1=V. \|last2=Ramachandran \|first2=N. K. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=1996 \|title=A record of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) in Upper Bhavani \|url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbombay931996bomb/page/82/mode/1up \|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society \|volume=93 \|issue=1 \|page=82}}</ref><ref name=Mudappa1999>{{cite journal \|last=Mudappa \|first=D. \|year=1999 \|title=Lesser Known Carnivores of the Western Ghats \|url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n85 \|journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas \|publisher=[[Wildlife Institute of India]] \|place=Dehradun \|volume=2 \|issue=2 \|pages=65–70}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last=Balakrishnan \|first=P. \|year=2005 \|title=Recent sightings and habitat characteristics of the endemic Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in Western Ghats, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=33 \|pages=14–16 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232550/http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal \|last1=Krishna \|first1=K. \|last2=Karnad \|first2=D. \|name-list-style=amp \|year=2010 \|title=New records of the Nilgiri marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in the Western Ghats, India \|url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|journal=Small Carnivore Conservation \|volume=43 \|pages=23–27 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419233345/http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 \|archive-date=19 April 2020 \|url-status=live}}</ref>
	The species is named after the collector Reynolds Gwatkins who gave a specimen to Colonel W.H. Sykes and was described by Thomas Horsfield from the skin in the museum of the East India Company.<ref>{{cite book\|url=https://archive.org/details/catalogueofmamma00eastrich/page/100/mode/1up\|title=A Catalogue of the Mammalia in the Museum of the Hon. East India Company \|year=1851\|pages=99-101}}</ref>

	==~~Ecology~~ and ~~behaviour~~==		== Behaviour and ecology ==
	~~[[File:Nilgiri marten Nelliyampathy.jpg\|thumb\|left\|Nilgiri marten in the forest near [[Nelliyampathy]]]]~~		The Nilgiri marten is [[Diurnal animal\|diurnal]]. It is mainly [[arboreal]], but descends to the ground occasionally. It is [[omnivorous]] and [[prey]]s on [[bird]]s, small mammals (including the Malabar giant squirrel) and insects such as [[cicada]]s.<ref>{{cite journal \|last=Hutton \|first=A. F. \|year=1948 \|title=Feeding habits of the Nilgiri marten [''Charronia gwatkinsii'' (Horsfield) \|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society \|volume=48 \|issue=2 \|pages=355–356 \|url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbo4819481949bomb/page/354}}</ref><ref name=Prater/> It has also been observed feeding on a variety of fruits and seeds.<ref>{{cite journal \|author1=Anil, G. \|author2=Kishor, N. \|author3=Gafoor, N. \|author4=Ommer, N. \|author5=Nameer, P. O. \|name-list-style=amp \|date=2018 \|title=Observations on the Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' (Mammalia: Carnivora: Mustelidae) from Pampadum Shola National Park, the southern Western Ghats, India \|journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa \|volume=10 \|issue=1 \|pages=11226–11230 \|doi=10.11609/jott.3446.10.1.11226-11230 \|doi-access=free}}</ref>
	The Nilgiri marten is [[Diurnal animal\|diurnal]]. It is mainly [[arboreal]], but descends to the ground occasionally. It is [[omnivorous]] and [[prey]]s on [[bird]]s, small mammals and insects such as [[cicada]]s.<ref>{{cite journal \|last=Hutton \|first=A. F. \|year=1948 \|title=Feeding habits of the Nilgiri marten [''Charronia gwatkinsii'' (Horsfield)] \|journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society \|volume=48 \|issue=2 \|pages=355–356 \|url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbo4819481949bomb/page/354 ~~\|issn=0006-6982~~}}</ref><ref name=Prater/> It has also been observed feeding on a variety of fruits and seeds.<ref>{{cite journal \|author1=Anil, G. \|author2=Kishor, N. \|author3=Gafoor, N. \|author4=Ommer, N. \|author5=Nameer, P. O. \|name-list-style=amp \|date=2018 \|title=Observations on the Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' (Mammalia: Carnivora: Mustelidae) from Pampadum Shola National Park, the southern Western Ghats, India \|journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa \|volume=10 \|issue=1 \|pages=11226–11230 \|doi=10.11609/jott.3446.10.1.11226-11230 \|doi-access=free }}</ref>
	~~{{clear}}~~

	==References==		==References==
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	==External links==		==External links==
	~~{{Commons category\|Martes gwatkinsii}}~~		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110126034423/http://frontlineonnet.com/fl2605/stories/20090313260506400.htm Photographs: Close encounters in the wild]
	* [http://~~www.~~frontlineonnet.com/fl2605/stories/20090313260506400.htm Photographs: Close encounters in the wild]		* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091226201223/http://www.nilgirimarten.com/ NilgiriMarten.com] (archived 26 December 2009)
	* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091226201223/http://www.nilgirimarten.com/ NilgiriMarten.com]

	{{Carnivora\|M.}}		{{Carnivora\|M.}}
	{{Taxonbar\|from=Q602823}}		{{Taxonbar\|from=Q602823}}

	~~{{DEFAULTSORT:marten, Nilgiri}}~~		[[Category:Martens]]
	[[Category:Martens~~\|Nilgiri marten~~]]
	[[Category:Mammals of India]]		[[Category:Mammals of India]]
	[[Category:~~Fauna~~ of Tamil Nadu]]		[[Category:Mammals of Tamil Nadu]]
	[[Category:Fauna of the Western Ghats]]		[[Category:Fauna of the Western Ghats]]
	[[Category:Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats]]		[[Category:Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats]]
	[[Category:Mammals described in 1851~~\|Nilgiri marten~~]]		[[Category:Mammals described in 1851]]

2601:647:4180:6010:D549:CB10:5CAF:760B at 21:18, 19 August 2021

2021-08-19T21:18:35Z

New page

{{Short description|Species of carnivore}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2020}}
{{speciesbox
| name = Nilgiri marten
| image = Nilgiri marten by N A Nazeer.jpg
| image_caption =
| status = VU
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Martes gwatkinsii'' |last1=Mudappa |first1=D. |last2=Jathana |first2=D. |last3=Raman |first3=T. R. S. |name-list-style=amp |date=2015 |volume=2015 |page=e.T12847A86161239}}</ref>
| genus = Martes
| species = gwatkinsii
| authority = ([[Thomas Horsfield|Horsfield]], 1851)
| range_map = Nilgiri Marten area.png
| range_map_caption = Nilgiri marten range
| synonyms = ''Charronia gwatkinsii''
}}

The '''Nilgiri marten''' (''Martes gwatkinsii'') is the only [[marten]] species native to southern [[India]]. It lives in the hills of the [[Nilgiris (mountains)|Nilgiris]] and parts of the [[Western Ghats]]. With only around a thousand members left it is listed as [[Vulnerable species|Vulnerable]] on the [[IUCN Red List]].<ref name=iucn/>

==Description==
[[File:Nilgiri Marten (Martes gwatkinsii).jpg|thumb|left|Two Nilgiri martens in [[Pampadum Shola National Park]]]]
The Nilgiri marten is deep brown from head to rump, with the forequarters being almost reddish, with a bright throat ranging in colour from yellow to orange. It has a prominent frontal [[wikt:concave|concavity]] and is larger than the [[yellow-throated marten]].<ref name=Prater>{{cite book |last=Prater |first=S. H. |author-link=Stanley Henry Prater |title=The Book of Indian Animals |publisher=Bombay Natural History Society, Oxford University Press |location=Mumbai |year=2005 |orig-year=1971 |edition=3rd }}</ref> It is about {{convert|55-65|cm|abbr=on}} long from head to vent and has a tail of {{convert|40-45|cm|abbr=on}}. It weighs about {{convert|2.1|kg|abbr=on}}.<ref name="Hussain1999">{{cite journal |last=Hussain |first=S. A. |author-link=S. A. Hussain |year=1999 |title=Mustelids, Viverrids and Herpestids of India: Species Profile and Conservation Status |url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n6 |journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas |publisher=[[Wildlife Institute of India]] |publication-place=Dehradun |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=1–38 |issn=0972-088X}}</ref>{{rp|6}}

==Distribution and habitat==
The Nilgiri marten mainly inhabits the [[shola|shola grassland]] and [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests|high altitude evergreen forests]], and occasionally the adjacent [[South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests|mid-altitude moist deciduous forests]] and commercial plantations, that span the [[Western Ghats]] in the [[South India]]n states of [[Karnataka]], [[Kerala]], and [[Tamil Nadu]]. The marten's English common name is derived from the [[Nilgiri Hills]] that form the center of its range, but sightings have been reported as far north as [[Charmadi|Charmadi Ghat]] and as far south as the [[Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary|Neyyar]] and [[Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary|Peppara Wildlife Sanctuaries]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Christopher |first1=G. |last2=Jayson |first2=E. A. |name-list-style=amp |year=1996 |title=Sightings of Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) at Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary and Silent Valley National Park, Kerala, India |url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |format=PDF |journal=Small Carnivore Conservation |volume=15 |pages=3–4 |issn=1019-5041 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232855/http://nebula.wsimg.com/64d3896788bb835fc33faca74f75641f?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |archive-date=19 April 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Madhusudan |first=M. D. |author-link=Mysore Doreswamy Madhusudan |year=1995 |title=Sighting of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'') at Eravikulam National Park, Kerala, India |url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |format=PDF |journal=Small Carnivore Conservation |volume=13 |pages=6–7 |issn=1019-5041 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419231854/http://nebula.wsimg.com/4a5cc4f2fa3c0b46304f59b6fe74ad45?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |archive-date=19 April 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gokula |first1=V. |last2=Ramachandran |first2=N. K. |name-list-style=amp |year=1996 |title=A record of the Nilgiri marten (''Martes gwatkinsii'' Horsfield) in Upper Bhavani |url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbombay931996bomb/page/82/mode/1up |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=93 |issue=1 |page=82 |issn=0006-6982}}</ref><ref name="Mudappa1999">{{cite journal |last=Mudappa |first=D. |year=1999 |title=Lesser Known Carnivores of the Western Ghats |url=https://archive.org/details/MustelidsViverridsIndia/page/n85 |journal=ENVIS Bulletin: Wildlife and Protected Areas |publisher=[[Wildlife Institute of India]] |publication-place=Dehradun |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=65–70 |issn=0972-088X}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Balakrishnan |first=P. |year=2005 |title=Recent sightings and habitat characteristics of the endemic Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in Western Ghats, India |url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |format=PDF |journal=Small Carnivore Conservation |volume=33 |pages=14–16 |issn=1019-5041 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419232550/http://nebula.wsimg.com/8e6155184fe900bd8dd47aada16e4b88?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |archive-date=19 April 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Krishna |first1=K. |last2=Karnad |first2=D. |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=New records of the Nilgiri marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' in the Western Ghats, India |url=http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |format=PDF |journal=Small Carnivore Conservation |volume=43 |pages=23–27 |issn=1019-5041 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419233345/http://nebula.wsimg.com/29fcac2ce03b2ae724f045e27b3d66bf?AccessKeyId=35E369A09ED705622D78&disposition=0&alloworigin=1 |archive-date=19 April 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Martes gwatkinsii Nilgiri Marten crossing the road in Anaimalai hills collage.jpg|thumb|center|upright=2.5|Photomontage of a Nilgiri marten crossing the road in the [[Anaimalai Hills]]]]
The species is named after the collector Reynolds Gwatkins who gave a specimen to Colonel W.H. Sykes and was described by Thomas Horsfield from the skin in the museum of the East India Company.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/catalogueofmamma00eastrich/page/100/mode/1up|title=A Catalogue of the Mammalia in the Museum of the Hon. East India Company |year=1851|pages=99-101}}</ref>

==Ecology and behaviour==
[[File:Nilgiri marten Nelliyampathy.jpg|thumb|left|Nilgiri marten in the forest near [[Nelliyampathy]]]]
The Nilgiri marten is [[Diurnal animal|diurnal]]. It is mainly [[arboreal]], but descends to the ground occasionally. It is [[omnivorous]] and [[prey]]s on [[bird]]s, small mammals and insects such as [[cicada]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hutton |first=A. F. |year=1948 |title=Feeding habits of the Nilgiri marten [''Charronia gwatkinsii'' (Horsfield)] |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=48 |issue=2 |pages=355–356 |url=https://archive.org/details/journalofbo4819481949bomb/page/354 |issn=0006-6982}}</ref><ref name=Prater/> It has also been observed feeding on a variety of fruits and seeds.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Anil, G. |author2=Kishor, N. |author3=Gafoor, N. |author4=Ommer, N. |author5=Nameer, P. O. |name-list-style=amp |date=2018 |title=Observations on the Nilgiri Marten ''Martes gwatkinsii'' (Mammalia: Carnivora: Mustelidae) from Pampadum Shola National Park, the southern Western Ghats, India |journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=11226–11230 |doi=10.11609/jott.3446.10.1.11226-11230 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
{{clear}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Martes gwatkinsii}}
* [http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2605/stories/20090313260506400.htm Photographs: Close encounters in the wild]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091226201223/http://www.nilgirimarten.com/ NilgiriMarten.com]

{{Carnivora|M.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q602823}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:marten, Nilgiri}}
[[Category:Martens|Nilgiri marten]]
[[Category:Mammals of India]]
[[Category:Fauna of Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Western Ghats]]
[[Category:Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1851|Nilgiri marten]]