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In the UK, the term "weasel" usually refers to the smallest species, the least weasel (M. nivalis), [1] the smallest carnivoran species. [ 2 ] Least weasels vary in length from 173 to 217 mm ( 6 + 3 ⁄ 4 to 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in), [ 3 ] females being smaller than the males, and usually have red or brown upper coats and white bellies; some populations ...
Population sizes are largely unknown, though two species, the sea mink and Japanese otter, were hunted to extinction in 1894 and 1979, respectively, and several other species are endangered. Some species have been domesticated, e.g. the ferret and some populations of the South American tayra. Mustelidae is one of the oldest families in ...
The least weasel is the product of a process begun 5–7 million years ago, when northern forests were replaced by open grassland, thus prompting an explosive evolution of small, burrowing rodents. The weasel's ancestors were larger than the current form, and underwent a reduction in size to exploit the new food source.
Sthenictis sp. (American Museum of Natural History). Mustelids vary greatly in size and behaviour. The smaller variants of the least weasel can be under 20 cm (8 in) in length, while the giant otter of Amazonian South America can measure up to 1.7 m (5 ft 7 in) and sea otters can exceed 45 kg (99 lb) in weight.
NO. 20: 2-FOOT-LONG CREATURE — WITH BLUE LIPS AND YELLOW EYES — DISCOVERED AS NEW SPECIES. Photos show the brightly colored animal found in tree hollows and coastal forests of Vietnam ...
The long-tailed weasel was originally described in the genus Mustela with the name Mustela frenata by Hinrich Lichtenstein in 1831. [3] [4] In 1993, the classification, Mustela frenata, was accepted into the second edition of the Mammal species of the world: a taxonomic and geographic reference, which was published by the Smithsonian Institution Press. [4]
Weasels are mammals belonging to the family Mustelidae and the genus Mustela, which includes stoats, least weasels, ferrets, and minks, among others. Different species of weasel have lived alongside humans on every continent except Antarctica and Australia, and have been assigned a wide range of folkloric and mythical meanings.
The Siberian weasel builds its nest inside fallen logs, empty stumps, brushwood piles and exposed tree roots. It also uses and enlarges the dens of other species. The length of its burrows ranges from 0.6–4.2 m (2 ft 0 in – 13 ft 9 in) and 0.2–1.3 m (7.9 in – 4 ft 3.2 in) deep.