Morphometric discrimination between Martes martes and Martes foina in Italy: the use of the baculum

摘要: Martes martes and foina are the only two Italian species of genus . As they very similar in morphology coloration, their taxonomic identification may represent a hard task. We aimed to assess reliability baculum length as diagnostic tool for martens. A sample 53 adult males belonging was collected. The individuals pine- or stone marten followed 2-step procedure: i) morphometric analysis ii) cross-checking with genetic analysis. According ranges reported available literature, 21 were classified 15 pine marten, while 17 specimens remained unidentified. Using “Baculum Index” , defined as: (Head Length + Body Length) / Total Baculum Length, split into distinct groups: fell 6.24-8.10 range 32 9.52-11.17 range. Genetic led same results. While is insufficient identify certainty, Index showed be reliable tool.