The marten (Martes foina) belongs to the mustelid family, like the ferret, the otter and the weasel. It is distinguished from the marten, its close cousin, by brown-gray fur, a white plastron which goes down to the front legs, shorter ears with a less marked light border and also shorter legs.
The marten is opportunistic, its food is varied. It attacks the roots of garden vegetables (green beans) and those of plant bulbs. It also likes apples, cherries, blackberries, sloes and blueberries.