A woodland species long absent from the forests of Ohio has made a triumphant return. For the first time in centuries, wildlife officials have documented the appearance of a furry creature known as the fisher.

Officials at the Cleveland Metroparks detailed the fisher’s comeback, caught on a wildlife camera last year, in a recent Instagram post. It’s the first verified sighting of the mammal in the region since the 1800s, when it was locally driven to extinction. Its reappearance is likely a sign that conservation efforts in the area and nearby states are beginning to bear fruit.

“This is tremendously exciting, as this is yet another extirpated native Ohio mammal species to be documented for the first time in Cleveland Metroparks,” officials said in the post.

A resurgent fisher

The fisher is formally known as Pekania pennanti (or Martes pennanti). It belongs to a large family of carnivorous mammals known as mustelids, which includes weasels, otters, and badgers. Despite the nickname, these tree-climbing mammals actually mostly feed on rabbits, birds, and other small critters; they’re also one of the few animals brave enough to regularly hunt porcupines.

Fishers are now commonly found in the northernmost forests across North America, but their range used to extend farther south throughout the U.S. During the 19th and 20th centuries, however, fisher populations in states like Ohio were devastated by overhunting (they were prized for their fur) and logging-related habitat loss.

Many states had passed hunting restrictions on fishers by the mid-1950s, allowing them to avoid complete extinction. Their overall population numbers today are healthy, but they still haven’t returned to many of the areas of the country where they were once common, and local populations in northwestern states like Washington remain threatened. That makes their recent reemergence in Ohio all the more monumental.

According to Cleveland Metroparks officials, there have been several dozen reports of fishers in the state since 2013. The animal’s latest camera cameo, though, is the first verified sighting in Cuyahoga County since the 1800s, state wildlife officials said.

Returning species

The fisher isn’t the only animal as of late to have found its way back to the region.

“The return of fishers and other [locally extinct] species like otters, bobcats and trumpeter swans are a result of conservation efforts and emphasize the importance of our healthy forests, wetlands, waterways and natural areas in Cleveland Metroparks,” officials said. Reintroduction and breeding programs in nearby states like Pennsylvania and New York might have also facilitated the fisher’s reestablishment.

There are obviously many other native species in North America that remain threatened. That said, it’s nice to take a victory lap when you can.

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington is hiring seasonal workers.

Candidates must be at least 16 to apply, according to a Mid-Ohio news release.

Workers are needed for customer service and ticketing; food service, catering and concessions; operations and maintenance; safety; guest services and security; and the track corner marshal departments.

Applications can be completed online at midohio.com/jobs. In-person applications can be delivered 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at Mid-Ohio, 7721 Steam Corners Road in Lexington.

Interviews will be conducted in the Mid-Ohio Tower at the track 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 21. Anyone interested in a position is encouraged to attend and ask questions.

“As the new racing season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course draws near, we’re seeking motivated and dependable individuals to join our team in several seasonal roles,” Mid-Ohio President Craig Rust said. “It’s a unique chance to be part of the energy and excitement of professional motorsports at one of the premier racing facilities in the country. Interested applicants can apply today or attend our in-person interview day at the track on Saturday, March 21.”

• An Ohio Supreme Court filing seeks to compel a vote on a residency challenge against a Delaware County Board of Elections member.
• The challenge questions whether board member Melanie Leneghan lives in Ohio or South Carolina.
• The filing argues the board has a legal duty to hold the hearing before the upcoming primary election.

An attorney representing a woman challenging whether a Delaware County Board of Elections member lives in Ohio has asked the Ohio Supreme Court to force the remaining three elections board members to vote on the challenge.

The filing with the state’s high court came four days after the county elections board did not hold a hearing on the residency challenge against board member Melanie Leneghan, who is also the female District 19 representative for the Republican State Central Committee.

The elections board did not hold the residency hearing during its March 5 meeting or take any action on the challenge because the board’s two Democrats, Ed Helvey and Peg Watkins, recused themselves over concerns that any action they took could be seen as partisan.

Leneghan also recused herself, leaving only the board’s other Republican member, Steve Cuckler. As a result, the board didn’t have the required three members needed for a quorum.

Delaware County Republican Party Central Committee member Velva Dunn is challenging Leneghan’s right to vote in Ohio and her candidacy for reelection to the central committee in the May primary. In her challenge, Dunn alleges that Leneghan lives in South Carolina.

Leneghan, a former Liberty Township trustee, sold her home near Powell in January 2025. She is registered to vote in Galena, the elections board’s website shows.

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Leneghan told The Dispatch on March 3 that she spends the majority of her time in Ohio, though she travels out of state for her sales job and owns property elsewhere, including in South Carolina, where she visits her daughter in college.

Dunn’s attorney, Curt Hartman, argued in the Supreme Court filing that Helvey and Watkins do not have a direct and personal interest in the challenge and their recusals, “while admirable in terms of seeking to put beyond reproach any perception of bias, is not sufficient to justify their recusal in this instance.”

Unlike when a judge or a prosecutor recuses themselves and appoints a visiting judge or special prosecutor, Hartman argued there is no mechanism or process outlined in Ohio law regarding recusals on boards of election, which are comprised of two Democrats and two Republicans. Hartman alleged that the Ohio Secretary of State does not have legal authority to consider such matters instead of the elections board.

Because there is no other remedy, Hartman argues in the filing that the other three board members have a clear legal duty to hold and conduct the hearing as required by Ohio law.

Hartman is also asking the Supreme Court to force the hearing because Leneghan is seeking reelection to the state central committee in the upcoming May 5 primary election.

In a March 11 response, the elections board’s special counsel, Frank J. Reed Jr., says that the legal concept Hartman is arguing doesn’t apply in these circumstances.

Reed also wrote that Helvey’s and Watkins’s actions were proper under the Ohio Secretary of State’s Ethics Policy for Ohio elections boards. The policy, in part, states: “Members and employees of the boards of elections should avoid actions and associations that create an appearance of impropriety, that undermine public confidence in Ohio elections officials, or that interfere with the performance of duties by Ohio elections officials.”

Now, the case is up to the justices to make a decision. The docket does not indicate when that would happen.

Delaware County and eastern Columbus suburbs reporter Maria DeVito can be reached at mdevito@dispatch.com and @mariadevito13.dispatch.com on Bluesky and @MariaDeVito13 on X.