The mustelidae family

Part one the weasel

The weasel is the smallest member of the weasel family,It looks like a long,slim fast moving mouse.The weasel is Britain's smallest carnivore,and a fierce hunter by day or by night.Like all the other members of the weasel family it has a long,sinuous body and comparatively short legs.The weasel has brown fur and a wavy flank line,This then reveals white underparts with small brown patches on its throat,With a brown tail.Unlike the stoat ,its coat does not normally go white in winter,Apart from in northern Europe where the climate is colder.The male is about eight inches long with a two inch tail,The female is slightly smaller.Mice are their main food along with voles,rats,and small birds,They kill their prey by a bite to the back of the neck.Their territory depends on the availability of food,This is normally between ten and twenty acres.Most weasels don't live for more than a year as they are preyed on by cats,foxes,birds of prey along with quite a few killed on our roads.Weasels are found in woods,farms and in large gardens,They are active by day or night.They normally nest in abandoned rabbit or badger burrows,Weasels live alone and they only come together to mate,So its the female that raises her kits.These are born in April or may and normally number about six,They are born blind,They open their eyes after about three weeks,leaves or dry grass is what their nest is normally made from.They may have a second litter in July or august and unlike other British carnivores, the first litter may be capable of breeding in their first summer.The young stay with their mother for about twelve weeks,By which time they are fully grown.