European_polecat

European Polecat
European Polecats
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Mustelidae Genus: Mustela Species: M. putorius
Binomial name
Mustela putorius (Linnaeus, 1758)

This article is about one species of mammal referred to as "Polecat". For other uses, see Polecat (disambiguation).

The European Polecat (Mustela putorius), also known as a fitch, is a member of the Mustelidae family, and is related to the stoats, otters, weasels, and minks. They are dark brown with a lighter bandit-like mask across the face, pale yellow underbody fur, a long tail and short legs. They are somewhat larger than weasels, weighing between 0.7 kg for females to 1.7 kg for males, but smaller than otters.

Range, habitat and ecology

Polecats are found throughout European countries.Mapmaker at european-mammals.org, accessed Nov 2007 [1] They are mainly nocturnal and are found in woodlands, farmlands, and wetlands. They often make dens in stream banks or under tree roots. Almost entirely carnivorous, they feed largely on small mammals such as voles and rats and, seasonally, on frogs and toads. Small birds and insects are a much smaller component of their diet.Lodé, T. (2000) Functional response and area-restricted search in a predator: seasonal exploitation of anurans by the European polecat, Mustela putorius Austral Ecology 25 (3), 223–231. They require a home range of about a square kilometer. The pattern of polecat predation on frogs was found to be sex selective and predation by polecats is found to influence sex ratio, male abundance and sexual conflict in a frog mating system, restricting the opportunity for multiple mating.Lodé, T., Hovleck, M.J., LesBarreres, D. & Pagano, A. (2004). Sex-biased predation by polecats influences the mating system of frogs. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, (suppl.), Biology Letters: 271 (S6): S399-S401

Reproduction

Though polecats are chiefly polygynous, females can show polyandry and the sexual conflict aspect of the mating system can change with environmental conditions. Sexual conflict may result in sexually antagonistic co-evolution, in which one sex evolves a "manipulative" character which is countered by a "resistance" trait in the other sex. Deliberate homosexuality has also been observed in wild polecats^{[citation needed]}.

Polecats (mainly dark phenotype) are able to hybridize with the rare European mink and have fertile hybrids.Lodé T., Guiral G. & Peltier D. (2005) European mink-polecat hybridization events: hazards from natural process ? Journal of Heredity 96 (2): 1-8 In some parts of England, the abandoning of domestic ferrets has led to ferret-polecat hybrids living in the wild that are almost indistinguishable from pure polecats.

Other species

Other species of polecat include the Steppe Polecat (M. eversmanni) and the European Mink (M. lutreola). Most zoologists believe that the domestic ferret (M. putorius furo) is descended from the European Polecat, or possibly from a hybrid of the European and steppe varieties. The Zorilla, also called the striped polecat (Ictonyx striatus), lives in subsaharan Africa.

References

• Mustelid Specialist Group (1996). Mustela putorius. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 09 May 2006.

External links

• Waarneming.nl Pictures, sightings, distribution maps of European polecats in the Netherlands.

Gallery

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Mustela putorius

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Mustela putorius

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