Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
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.
Weasels feed on small mammals and have from time to time been considered vermin because some species took poultry from farms or rabbits from commercial warrens. They do, on the other hand, eat large numbers of rodents. Their range spans Europe, North America, much of Asia and South America, and small areas in North Africa.
Skulls of a long-tailed weasel (top), a stoat (bottom left) and least weasel (bottom right), as illustrated in Merriam's Synopsis of the Weasels of North America. The long-tailed 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 milk teeth erupt at 2 to 3 weeks of age, at which point the young start to eat solid food, though lactation can last 12 weeks. The eyes and ears open at 3 to 4 weeks of age, and by 8 weeks, killing behaviour is developed. The family breaks up after 9 to 12 weeks. [30] There is a single litter each year and least weasels can live for 7 or 8 ...
The diet of the Japanese weasel involves a mix of animals including mice, reptiles, crayfish and frogs. [5] They eat some non-meat food such as berries, seeds and fruits but generally only when hungry. [11] [7] Additionally, there is a difference between the diets of males and females due to their sexual dimorphism. [10]
They typically eat about 100–120 grams (3.5–4.2 oz) of food daily, and cache excess food. [6] In urban areas in China, Siberian weasels prey extensively on rats. They are capable of killing and dragging the largest fowls. [7] Siberian weasels are active hunters and chase prey through snow, logs, water and people's houses. [3] [8]
As herbivores, hippos peacefully graze throughout the night, eating grasses and aquatic plants. However, they won’t hesitate to attack anything that threatens their space, food, or young.
Domestic mink and ferrets are closely related mustelids both of the weasel subfamily. A 1968 study concluded that while mink eggs cannot be fertilised by ferret sperm, a ferret's egg can be fertilised if there is a high number of mink sperm. [ 21 ]