Fisher Cat

Has anyone actually heard and better yet have a authentic audio recording of a Fisher Cat making its screeches? Does anyone else know the kinds of screeching I am talking about? I was out trying to watch the Perseid's and I had one walk up to me maybe 15 feet away. I was shining a very bright light on it and it turned and walked uphill toward my house. Shortly after that it stated its screeching. It kept doing it for a short period and then stopped. Then it started up later and kept it up for half and hour or so. This was at 3AM and it was very close to the house. I am glad I saw what was making that sound. If I was camping solo I don't think I would have been able to get back to sleep if I didn't know what that was. I have heard lots of sounds in the woods and know a lot of them. This was a unique and very odd noise. Someone said it sounds like someone killing a baby. It is not like rabbits or foxes. I have listened to several pieces of audio on the internet claiming to be a Fisher Cat. Many don't sound right and then in the comments section many people say it isn't a Fisher, it is a Fox or sometimes other animal. I know that ones I have listened to so far on the internet as audio doesn't sound like what I heard. I have read that they make these sounds for calling mates, before hunting and after hunting. This location was in Freedom, NH not in the backwoods of the Whites, by the way. Just before this Fishers visit I was bothered by a very fat Raccoon and could hear a Owl in the distance. It was a very cool night all things considered. Only saw a few meteors, but lots of wildlife. That Fisher rustling through the dried leaves coming straight in my direction in the pitch black surprised me though.

Regards,
Keith

Don't have an audio source, but I can tell you that the sequence raccoon + fisher was probably no coincidence. The latter preys on the former with some regularity.

I awoke one night to a godawful racket in our yard. Went out with a strong flashlight -- spotted a fisher making its exit through the trees and one very unhappy raccoon way out on the end of a branch.

SAR-EMT40 said:

... better yet have a authentic audio recording of a Fisher Cat making its screeches? Regards,
Keith

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I have heard "babies being tortured" in the woods but can not confirm they were fisher, more likely fox or bobcat. It sounds like you may have a project pending. I've been thinking of deploying motion/game cameras and hav-a-heart traps around my area as we are hearing, and seeing the leavings of, some odd things this year.

Chip said:

I have heard "babies being tortured" in the woods but can not confirm they were fisher, more likely fox or bobcat. It sounds like you may have a project pending. I've been thinking of deploying motion/game cameras and hav-a-heart traps around my area as we are hearing, and seeing the leavings of, some odd things this year.

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I already have plans to bring my game camera up to the lake house to get pictures of this guy. Audio will be more difficult. I wish I had my phone with me when he started his noises. I could have recorded it with an app I have. My wife can verify the noises though. It was freaking her out. I actually slept through some his/her noises.


Keith

sardog1 said:

Don't have an audio source, but I can tell you that the sequence raccoon + fisher was probably no coincidence. The latter preys on the former with some regularity.

I awoke one night to a godawful racket in our yard. Went out with a strong flashlight -- spotted a fisher making its exit through the trees and one very unhappy raccoon way out on the end of a branch.

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Truth be known, I probably saved this raccoons life. He was coming in from the south heading north when I caught him in my light and scared him back south. Seconds latter I hear the fisher coming from the north heading directly towards him. He veered west away from me. I think that raccoon owes me. He can start by stop eating the bird seed out of the feeder. Actually I already fixed that problem. He can't get to it any more. A night or so later that raccoon was in the trees not far from where he was the previous night. He was up there throwing seed remnant down on me. Some thank you.

Keith

Fisher audio clip

A very unnerving sound when the night is dark and quiet!

http://soundbible.com/force-sounds.php?id=wav/Fisher Cat-SoundBible.com-2044465299.wav&clip=wav

islandside said:

A very unnerving sound when the night is dark and quiet!

http://soundbible.com/force-sounds.php?id=wav/Fisher Cat-SoundBible.com-2044465299.wav&clip=wav

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Thanks for this. Not to be argumentative but I have heard so many people say that this sounds like a fox. How can you tell that it is a Fisher?

Regards,
Keith

SAR-EMT40 said:

Thanks for this. Not to be argumentative but I have heard so many people say that this sounds like a fox. How can you tell that it is a Fisher?

Regards,
Keith

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I do admit, I simply went to Google and found the clearest recording I could find but can't myself verify what the recording is of.
http://fishercatscreech.com/
See this link though, there is a video near the bottom of the page of a young fisher and it makes a fuss when their dog gets too close.

islandside said:

I do admit, I simply went to Google and found the clearest recording I could find but can't myself verify what the recording is of.
http://fishercatscreech.com/
See this link though, there is a video near the bottom of the page of a young fisher and it makes a fuss when their dog gets too close.

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No question about the baby fisher.

Thanks,
Keith

SAR-EMT40 said:

Thanks for this. Not to be argumentative but I have heard so many people say that this sounds like a fox. How can you tell that it is a Fisher?

Regards,
Keith

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This one is 100% fox, all fox, all the time. It's most likely calling to other foxes to stake out its turf.

Here's a decent source for fox vocalizations: The Fox Forest -- Voices Carry

Sounds like me

The fisher?/fox? sound is just like the sound I make going up a steep slope when I am gasping for breath (though my noise is a little faster).

On a more serious note: I recently got a nice little digital recorder and a shotgun mic, now I just need some time to go hunting this stuff!

The recording didn't sound very scary. Perhaps that is just one of the sounds a fisher makes? The other night, late, I heard what sounded like a woman screaming in terror. Brief, but loud. Scared the heck out of me, until I decided it was some form of wildlife. Another woman in town says she heard "a young girl possessed by demons" at 3 in the morning, and was told it was probably a fisher.

Elizabeth said:

The recording didn't sound very scary. Perhaps that is just one of the sounds a fisher makes? The other night, late, I heard what sounded like a woman screaming in terror. Brief, but loud. Scared the heck out of me, until I decided it was some form of wildlife. Another woman in town says she heard "a young girl possessed by demons" at 3 in the morning, and was told it was probably a fisher.

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That is what the one I heard sounded like and the time is correct as well.

Keith

Here's a video of a fox barking

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxLHUxzEoRU

I think a fisher's call is closer to wail or a howl than the vixen's staccato "bark".

dentonfabrics said:

Here's a video of a fox barking

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxLHUxzEoRU

I think a fisher's call is closer to wail or a howl than the vixen's staccato "bark".

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Great video also, thanks.

You are right. These are not like what I heard the Fisher making for calls.

Keith