Siberian fur trade to overhunting. Instead of one sable pelt, the following was accepted as its equivalent: one fox, glutton (relative of the marten), or otter pelt; two blue-fox pelts; sixteen polar-fox pelts; or one hundred squirrel pelts. The Russian government decided the amount of other pelts that were equivalent to the sable pelt. Within forty years, almost all Siberian natives were forced into paying fur tribute to the Russians. Russian traders, hunters, and explorers reached the Pacific coastline by 1650 and were collecting fur tribute from most natives along the coast. Beyond the yasuk, the Russians had two principal ways of obtaining
American marten American marten The American marten or American pine marten ("Martes americana") is a North American member of the family Mustelidae, sometimes referred to as the pine marten. The name "pine marten" is derived from the common but distinct Eurasian species of "Martes". It differs from the fisher ("Pekania pennanti") in that it is smaller in size and lighter in colour. 14 subspecies have been recognized. Two subspecies groups have been recognized based on fossil history, cranial analysis, and mitochondrial DNA analysis. None of the subspecies are seperable based on morphology and subspecies taxonomy is usually ignored except with regards to