The Mustelidae are a diverse family of carnivorous mammals, including weasels, stoats, badgers, otters, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids, they form the largest family in the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora with about 66 to 70 species in nine subfamilies.
Weasels are mammals of the genus Mustela of the family Mustelidae. The genus Mustela includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets, and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodies and short legs. The family Mustelidae, or mustelids, is often referred to as the "weasel family". In the UK, the term "weasel" usually refers to the smallest species, the least weasel (M. nivalis), the smallest carnivoran species.
The stoat, also known as the Eurasian ermine, Beringian ermine and ermine, is a mustelid native to Eurasia and the northern regions of North America. Because of its wide circumpolar distribution, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It was introduced into New Zealand in the late 19th century to control rabbits, but had a devastating effect on native bird populations and was nominated as one of the world's top 100 "worst invaders".
Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera Neogale and Mustela and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": the American mink and the European mink. The extinct sea mink was related to the American mink but was much larger.
The kinkajou is a tropical rainforest mammal of the family Procyonidae related to olingos, coatis, raccoons, and the ringtail and cacomistle. It is the only member of the genus Potos and is also known as the "honey bear". Kinkajous are arboreal, a lifestyle they evolved independently; they are not closely related to any other tree-dwelling mammal group.
The long-tailed weasel, also known as the bridled weasel, masked ermine, or big stoat, is a species of mustelid distributed from southern Canada through much of the United States and Mexico, southward through all of Central America and into northern South America. It is distinct from the short-tailed weasel, also known as a "stoat", a close relation in the genus Mustela that originated in Eurasia and crossed into North America some half million years ago; the two species are visually similar, especially the black tail tip.
The least weasel, little weasel, common weasel, or simply weasel is the smallest member of the genus Mustela, family Mustelidae and order Carnivora. It is native to Eurasia, North America and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Malta, Crete, the Azores, and São Tomé. It is classified as least concern by the IUCN, due to its wide distribution and large population throughout the Northern Hemisphere.
The Indonesian mountain weasel is a species of weasel that lives on the islands of Java and Sumatra in Indonesia at elevations over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). They live in mountainous, tropical, and rainforest areas. Indonesian mountain weasels have a body length of 280–300 mm (11–12 in) and a tail length of 130–150 mm (5–6 in). They are reddish-brown in color.
The sea mink is a recently extinct species of mink that lived on the eastern coast of North America around the Gulf of Maine on the New England seaboard. It was most closely related to the American mink, with continuing debate about whether or not the sea mink should be considered a subspecies of the American mink or a species of its own. The main justification for a separate species designation is the size difference between the two minks, but other distinctions have been made, such as its redder fur. The only known remains are bone fragments unearthed in Native American shell middens. Its actual size is speculative, based largely on tooth remains.
The striped hog-nosed skunk is a skunk species from Central and South America. This species of skunk is considered a generalist species, because they are able to thrive in, and withstand, disturbed environmental conditions. They can live in a wide range of habitats, including carrasco, arboreal caatinga, mango orchard, and dry forest scrub and occasionally, in rainforest.
The southern Amazon red squirrel, is a squirrel species from South America where it inhabits forests in much of north-western South America east of the Andes. Three subspecies are currently recognised. It is a dark red colour, or a dark brown grizzled with ochre, has whitish underparts and grows to a total length of 48 to 63 cm, including a very long tail. It spends much of its time on the ground in the undergrowth and feeds largely on nuts. Little is known of its breeding habits, but it is a sociable species, several individuals often feeding together in one tree. This squirrel faces no particular threats, has a wide range and is relatively common, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature lists it as a "least-concern species".
The Colombian weasel, also known as Don Felipe's weasel, is a very rare species of weasel only known with certainty from the departments of Huila and Cauca in Colombia and nearby northern Ecuador. Both its scientific and alternative common name honours the mammalogist Philip "Don Felipe" Hershkovitz.
M. africana may refer to:
The tayra is an omnivorous animal from the weasel family, native to the Americas. It is the only species in the genus Eira.
Neogale is a genus of mustelid native to the Americas, ranging from Alaska south to Bolivia. Members of this genus are known as New World weasels.
Mustela aistoodonnivalis, the missing-toothed pygmy weasel or Sichuan weasel, is a species of weasel that inhabits mountains in the Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces of China.
