WEASEL (AS. iccsle, ONG. ieisoht, Ger. Wiese!, weasel; of uncertain etymology, perhaps akin to Gk. arXoupos, ailouros, eat, weasel ; pos sibly connected, in allusion to its habitat, with 01.1G. icisa, Ger. Wiese, meadow•, AS. was, mois ture, or, in allusion to its odor, with wesanrn, to become foul, Lat. virus, Gk. 16c, ins, Skt. risg, poison). One of the small, slender carnivores of the family Mustelithe, typical of the genus Putorius. The name was first applied to the small European rittorius noted for its constant pursuit of moles and field-mice (voles), other European species being known as polecats (q.v.) and stoats. The latter animal (Putorius ermineu) turns white in winter in northern localities, and its fur is `ermine' (q.v.). in North America are several species or varieties of weasels, all confusingly similar to one another and to the European ones. The one most familiar is the long-tailed or New Io•k weasel (Putoriits noreborucensis) of the Eastern Staters, the male of which is sixteen inches long, but the female only thir teen inches, more than one-third of which be longs to the tail. it is dark ehocolate-brown above and white beneath, with the end of the tail black. This stoat-like weasel turns pure white in winter wherever the climate is cold and snowy, except (as in all other species) for the black tip of the tail. A smaller species, much more widely distributed through the Northern United States and Canada, is the short-tailed, or Bonaparte's weasel (Putorius Cicognuni), the male and female measuring eleven and nine inches respectively, of which the tail takes less than a quarter; its brown is darker and its white rather yellowish. This is the one which supplies most of the ermine pro cured in British America in winter, although the Arctic 'least' weasel (Pater/as risosus) sup plies some. This last species is only six inches long. Another 'least' weasel (Putorius Atte ghaniensis) dwells in the Western Alleghanies; while Florida and Texas have large species that never turn white. For various other species and subspecies, consult Elliot, Synopsis of the Mammals of North America (Chicago, 1901).
The disposition and habits of all weasels are alike. It is a slim, lithe, swift, muscular, ferocious little beast, diligent and persevering in pursuit of prey, and alert and clever in escaping its enemies—chiefly hawks and owls. It is an admirable hunter, and its scent is as keen as its sight. It quarters the ground like a dog, and wearies out animals larger and apparently much stronger than itself. It preys on mice, rats, birds, and other small animals, sometimes even on hares and rabbits, robs birds' nests, devouring the young birds or sucking the eggs, and is often troublesome in poultry yards. On the other hand, it does great good by devouring field-mice and the vermin about barns and granaries. It climbs walls and trees with great agility, and d.oes not hesitate to plunge into water in pursuit of the water-rat. It sometimes begins by abstracting the blood of the animal which it has killed, and generally devours the brain; but when food is abundant, it carries the body to its retreat, where a considerable quantity of prey is often found, the weasel continuing to eat it in a half-putrefied state. It is one of the few animals that ap parently kill for the love of killing, or at least this characteristic is suggested by the slaughter it will sometimes work in a poultry yard, and the fact that many of the chickens killed are left untouched, awl seemingly without even hav ing had their blood sucked. The weasel generally sleeps during the day, and is most active at night. It has a disagreeable smell, which is strongest in hot weather, or when it has been pursued or irritated. It is capable of being tamed when taken young, and becomes docile and gentle. The female weasel makes a nest of straw, leaves, and moss for her young, which are pro duced in four or five in a litter, often in a crevice of a hank, or in a hollow tree. See FUR-BEARING ANIMALS, and the bibliography and references there given.