Mustela erminea

Ferrets weigh 25-116 grams, have a body length of 170-330 mm, and a tail length of 95-140 mm. The body shape is similar to that of a weasel, with a slender body and short limbs. The color of the fur varies with the season. The back and ventral sides of the summer-haired body are different in color. The back is gray from the snout to the cheek, neck side, body side to the limbs, wrists and the back of the tail. Brown, the instep is gray-white; the ventral surface is white from the lower lip, jaw, throat to the abdomen and the inside of the limbs; the instep is gray-white; 2/3 of the lower base of the tail is the same as the belly color, and the 1/3 near the end is all black. The whole body of winter fur is pure white, with only the tail end being black.
The skull is shorter and wider. The snout is short, and the distance from the front edge of the orbit to the tip of the snout is less than the width between the two preorbital foramina. The center of the front end of the nasal bone is

Origin: Afghanistan, Albania, Andorra, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan.
Introduction: New Zealand.
The stoat is highly adaptable and is found in grassland meadows, swamp valleys, forests, semi-desert dunes and cultivated land. It lives in mountain forests and other areas.

Stoat (scientific name: Mustela erminea) Stoat, Ermine, Short-tailed Weasel, there are 37 subspecies.

Stoats are nocturnal animals that start to be active at dusk, but can sometimes be seen during the day. Most of their activity ranges are closely related to the activities of their prey. They generally move alone and have their own fixed hunting area. Marks are left on stones, tree stumps, and branches in the territory, secreted by the anal glands, and rubbed on significant objects in the activity area to indicate their territory. The movement is very agile, and the vision and hearing are also extremely sharp. When going out to forage, they usually observe and move forward tentatively. If they are crossing an open area or escaping, they will quickly bend their back into an arch shape as if they are running. If it walks quickly in small steps under normal circumstances, it will crawl close to the ground when encountering prey.

The stoat is a carnivore with a high ability to eat. It mainly feeds on rats, birds, amphibians, reptiles, fish and insects, and also eats plant berries. It has a strong hunting ability. Once it finds prey, it stretches its neck, closes its body to the ground, and crawls forward. When hunting, it first grabs the head, and uses the long and pointed upper canine teeth to penetrate the back of the prey's head, and the lower canine teeth penetrate into the brain from behind the ears, causing the prey to die quickly. Then move the prey to a secluded place before eating. Stoats have very sensitive hearing and vision and are flexible in movement. When they go out to look for food in winter, their tails drag on the snow, leaving traces behind, hence the name "snow sweeper".

Stoats are not good at digging holes, and they mostly make their nests in rock cracks, under tree roots or fallen trees, in piles of rocks, haystacks, tree holes, and in mouse holes. The structure of the nest is relatively simple, with hay, moss, twigs or prey's hair and feathers as the bedding. Estrus occurs from February to April every year and lasts almost the entire spring (in some places it lasts until summer). The mating season is in early summer. Mating begins in early summer. The pregnancy period is 9-10 months, and there is delayed implantation. The following year, there are 3-4 litters, with 4-9 litters per litter, up to 13 litters. Newly born cubs are hairless, blind, and weigh about 3-4 grams. Generally speaking, cubs born after 9-10 months of pregnancy are considered fully developed. However, the development of the embryo in the uterus of the female ferret only lasts for one and a half months before giving birth. Therefore, the cubs are not only fully developed when they are born. It is not fully developed and develops more slowly than other small mustelids: the eyes of ferret pups do not open until they are one month old. However, it soon became active and could come out of the cave to play with its companions. Young stoats start hunting when they are 60-70 days old, and they stay together until late summer. The lactation period of young ferrets is 42 days, and they reach sexual maturity between 3 months and 1 year old. Life expectancy is 5-8 years.

Ferrets mainly feed on various harmful rodents and are very beneficial to agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry. At the same time, ermine's winter fur is of better quality and can be used as decorative leather. In 2008, King Tupou V of Tonga wore an ermine skin to attend the coronation ceremony. In the past, stoats were hunted because their winter fur was so valuable. Hunting is now prohibited in most stoat habitats.

Listed in the 2013 Red List of Endangered Species of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) ver 3.1 - Least Concern (LC).

In China, it has been included in the "List of Terrestrial Wild Animals Protected by the State and Beneficial or of Important Economic and Scientific Research Value" issued by the State Forestry Administration on August 1, 2000.

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