Genetic polymorphisms were investigated in fishers (Martes pennanti) using
horizontal starch gel electrophoresis of allozymes. During the 1996-1997 fi
sher trapping season muscle and liver samples were collected from animals i
n New Hampshire, New York, Wisconsin, and West Virginia, whereas blood samp
les were collected from New Hampshire and New York animals only. A total of
30 gene loci were resolved from muscle, liver and blood samples. For the e
ntire pooled sample, the mean multilocus heterozygosity (direct count) was
0.047 and the percentages of loci polymorphic (0.95 criterion and 0.99 crit
erion) were 20.8 and 45.8, respectively.