Least weasel or short tail

[jigs]

I caught a small (5" including tail) weasel today that i suspect is a least weasel. It has a small bit (and I mean small) of black fur on the end of the tail that makes me wonder if it is a short tail. I have pictures but don't know how to post.

[Anzacron]

Originally Posted by jigs

I caught a small (5" including tail) weasel today that i suspect is a least weasel. It has a small bit (and I mean small) of black fur on the end of the tail that makes me wonder if it is a short tail. I have pictures but don't know how to post.

My understanding is a "least" has no black tip.

Likely an ermine.

"Long tails" the tail is longer than the body and head.

Ive just gone thru the trappers manual the other day, brushing up on weasels.


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[Strix]

If it is only 5 inches long, it certainly would be a Least Weasel. Five inches is even small
for a Least. The average length, including the tail, for a male Short-tailed Weasel is about 12 inches. (Males are smaller than females) It is not unusual for a Least Weasel to have a few black hairs on the tip of the tail.

[HunterDave]

Despite a little black on the tip of the tail, which least weasels are not supposed to have, at that size it has to be a least weasel. Even juvenile short tailed weasels are Twice that size at this time of year.

[KegRiver]

My "Mammals of Alberta" (lone Pine) lists Least Weasel at 6 to 9 inches total length including the tail and in their words

The short tail may have a few black hairs at the end but never an entirely black tip

They list short tailed Weasel at 8 to 13 inches.

To the best of my knowledge, with all members of the Weasel family, males are always larger, except when very young.


I know that by six weeks of age there is a noticeable size difference in short tailed Weasel. I know because when I was around 14 years old we rescued a litter of Weasel kits and raised them.

"The Natural History of Canadian Mammals" (Canadian Museum of nature) says this about the male/female body size relationship in members of the Weasel family.

Males are larger then females in all forms.

I agree that what you have is a Least Weasel but size is not a fixed thing with members of the Mustela genus which includes the Least Weasel.Members of that genus can very considerably between members of the same species plus a large Male Least can easily be as large as a small female Short tailed.

To the best of my knowledge I have never caught a Least Weasel but I have caught a few Weasels around 6 inches total length. I even had to build a special stretcher for them because they were too small for the stretchers I build from SRD patterns.

I remember wondering each time I caught one if it were a Least but each one I caught had an all black tipped tail so I decided they were smaller then average, maybe late litter juvenile female short tailed Weasel.

[spot and stock]

Here is a picture of a least next to a clamp off a cheap set of jumper cables for comparison. Maybe 7 inch with tail. Seemed to have a larger head in comparison the rest of the body than the other weasels. Cool catch non the less.

[Strix]

[QUOTE
To the best of my knowledge, with all members of the Weasel family, males are always larger

Thanks for picking up on that, Keg. Of course the males are larger. Too many New Year's Eve distractions while posting I guess. I think we all agree that it was likely a Least Weasel the OP caught.

[KegRiver]

Originally Posted by Strix

[QUOTE
To the best of my knowledge, with all members of the Weasel family, males are always larger

Thanks for picking up on that, Keg. Of course the males are larger. Too many New Year's Eve distractions while posting I guess. I think we all agree that it was likely a Least Weasel the OP caught.

No problem, I've been there done that, thinking of one thing while talking about another can lead to some awesome blunders, or at least in my case it does. LOL

Besides, you noticed something I didn't, you are right that 5 inches is small even for a Least Weasel, I wasn't even thinking about that aspect of it.

It's one thing to say the wrong thing when you are thinking about something else. I have a habit of saying the wrong thing when I'm thinking about the subject at hand.

Many years ago at a family gathering I noticed two little girls running around that I didn't recognize.
So I turned to my twin sister and asked, who popped those two.

She was offended and rightfully so, they were my nieces, her daughters.
Opps!

[jigs]

Thanks for the help folks. I am sure it is a least weasel. It will be a challenge skinning and boarding the critter.

[Anzacron]

Best part about this post, learning, learning, learning!

Happy new year, all the best!


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[antlercarver]

I think it is a least weasel. I have caught a few, but other than a novelty there is no fur value. Under our bird feeder with spilled seeds, there are mice. And a tiny weasel who is super nervous comes after the mice. This one almost never comes to top of snow but travels under only to pop up and duck back down. It is of a size that could travel in mouse tunnels under the snow. We took pictures which I will try to find.

[NW Tradegunner]

This is a short tailed weasel. The least weasel has no black tip on the end of it's tail. Also the summer coloration is more of a chocolate brown whereas the long tailed and short tailed weasels are more of a yellowish brown.