Weasel
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 Long-tailed
Weasel
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Species
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| Mustela
africana Mustela altaica Mustela erminea Mustela eversmannii Mustela felipei Mustela frenata Mustela kathiah Mustela lutreola Mustela lutreolina Mustela nigripes Mustela nivalis Mustela nudipes Mustela putorius Mustela sibirica Mustela strigidorsa Mustela vison |
Weasels are mammals in the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family. Originally, the name "weasel" was applied to one species of the genus, the European form of the Least Weasel (Mustela nivalis). Literary references to weasels usually refer to this species rather than to the genus as a whole.
Weasels vary in length from 15 to 35 centimeters, and usually have a light brown upper coat, white belly and black fur at the tip of the tail; in many species, populations living at high latitudes moult to a white coat with black fur at the tip of the tail in winter. They have long slender bodies, which enable them to follow their prey into burrows. Their tails are typically almost as long as the rest of their bodies. Weasels are intelligent creatures that are known for their cleverness and guile. For this reason, weasels commonly appear in fables.
Most weasels feed on small mammals, and in former times were considered vermin since some species took poultry from farms, or rabbits from commercial warrens.
The weasel is interesting in its approach to catching prey, because sometimes it will perform a "hypnotic dance" in front of the victim, which appears to mesmerise it. This behaviour is not prevalent in other species.
Of the 16 species classified in the genus Mustela, only 10 have "weasel" in their common name. Among those that do not are the Stoat, the two species of Mink, and the polecats or ferrets.
In mythology, it is sometimes said that the only thing which can kill a basilisk is a weasel, though it would be killed in the conflict as well. The earliest record of this claim is in Pliny's Naturalis Historia, book 8, par. 33. [1] It was repeated by Isidore of Seville in his Etymologiae, and subsequently by many medieval bestiarists.
Weasels have been associated with their devious natures in fictitious works. In the Dilbert cartoons, some of the most devious characters are weasels or have weasel-like features. In Brian Jacques' Redwall series, weasels are one of the many villians, including rats and ferrets.
To add to the weasel's reputation for skullduggery, the phrase "Weasel words" can be applied to someone who speaks insincerely or deviously. Famously, elements of the US media described the declaration by France, Germany and Belgium against the 2003 invasion of Iraq as "The Axis Of Weasel," a parody of the so-called "Axis of Evil."
Species of weasel
Smithy
- Tropical Weasel, Mustela africana
- Mountain Weasel, Mustela altaica
- Stoat Mustela erminea
- Steppe Polecat, Mustela eversmannii
- Colombian Weasel, Mustela felipei
- Long-tailed Weasel, Mustela frenata
- Yellow-bellied Weasel, Mustela kathiah
- European Mink, Mustela lutreola
- Indonesian Mountain Weasel, Mustela lutreolina
- Sea Mink, Mustela macrodon ( extinct)
- Black-footed Ferret, Mustela nigripes
- Least Weasel, Mustela nivalis
- Malayan Weasel, Mustela nudipes
- European Polecat, Mustela putorius
- Siberian Weasel, Mustela sibirica
- Black-striped Weasel, Mustela strigidorsa
- American Mink, Mustela vison