Long Tailed Weasel

Mustela frenata

By Paley

Classification

Kingdom-Animalia
Phylum-Chordata
Class-Mammalia
Order-Carnivora
Family-Mustelidae
Genus-Mustela
Species-frenata

Physical Description

Long tailed weasels have a long slender body. Males are normally larger than females. They have tails that are very long and fluffy. Their tails are about half of their total body length. These weasels have a small, exiguous head with elongated whiskers. Their legs are very short. These weasels have a brownish fur, which they shed twice a year.

Diet and Feeding Habits

The main prey of the long tailed weasel is small rodents like mice and rats. Females have more success catching such animals because they have smaller bodies and can fit in a small rodent burrows. Males hunt bigger animals, like rabbits. These weasels will also eat birds, reptiles, and even fruits and berries.

Reproduction

Mating starts in the mid-summer. The total gestation period is about 280 days. Birth is usually between late April to early May. Weasels weigh about 3 grams at birth, on average. Litters are about 6. After about a month, the weasel is old enough to eat meat brought back to the nest. At 2 months, weasels can catch and kill prey themselves.
Female long tailes weasels mate in their very first summer, while males wait until the next.

Habitat

Most long tailed weasels are found in North America. They range from the American/Canadian border, all the way down to South America. Weasels like to live in temperate and tropical habitats such as crop fields, small wooded areas, and suburban areas. These weasels do not live in deserts or thick forests. They construct their nests using logs, rock piles, or man made objects like under barns or houses. A weasel might also take the home of it's prey that it killed.

Role in the Ecosystem

Long tailed weasels play positive and negative rolls in the Ecosystem. They control populations of rodents and rabbits. They also have effects on humans. The positive effect is that long tailed weasels are good at catching mice and rats, so farmers don't mind having them around to catch all the pests. The negative effect they have on economic importance is that they have been known to raid flocks of poultry.

Bibliography

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Mustela_frenata.html
http://www.barrameda.com.ar/ecology/
http://www.cbu.edu/~seisen/ExamplesOfCommensalism.htm
http://www.dr-dan.com/heartwor1.htm