How harmful is kindness. Weasel is a gentle predatory animal. A photo. Relationship with a person

weasel very small animal. The smallest member of the marten family. It has a thin and elongated body. Short legs are armed with sharp claws. The neck is long and powerful. On a small blunt muzzle, a slightly forked nose, large dark eyes. Near the tail there are glands that secrete a substance with an unpleasant odor, with which the animal marks the territory and scares off the enemy. Weasel weighs no more than 200 grams.

Fur color depends on the season. In summer, the coat is brownish-brown, and in winter and autumn it is snow-white. The density of wool is the same at any time of the year. In summer, the hairline is shorter than in winter.

Weasel habitat

Weasel is found in Europe, Asia and North America. Can live in a wide variety of conditions. Lives on the outskirts of fields, in deserts and steppes. Can settle close to people. Often found in garden hedges, haystacks, barns and stables.

The animal does not build a hole for itself. Prefers to settle in the dwellings of rodents, which he had killed before. The weasel lines the bottom of the hole with dry grass, moss, and leaves. There may be several such habitats in a small area.

What does weasel eat

The habitat of the weasel depends on the number of rodents needed for food. The diet includes small animals, such as mice, moles, bears. In spring it eats eggs and chicks. Since this animal swims well, it can catch a fish or a frog. It can also feed on lizards, snails, snakes, and insects. In general, the weasel is a very bloodthirsty animal and kills everyone it manages to catch. Due to its small size, it can overtake rodents in their own holes.

By exterminating mice, the animal brings great benefits, which far outweigh the harm it causes to chicken coops. Sometimes weasel can fight off even a kite.

weasel breeding

Males are not faithful, so they can mate with several females at once. The mating season falls on March. In the presence of a large amount of food, it can breed all year round. The pregnancy lasts for a month.

Before the birth of children, the female creates a round nest in the hole from dry leaves and grass, where she gives birth. Can bring 4 to 8 babies at a time. She takes great care of them and protects them from danger. Babies are born blind, deaf and toothless. Seeing and hearing begin 3 weeks after birth. If the nest is disturbed, then the mother takes the newborn to another place. In a dangerous situation, the weasel will fight to the death for their babies.

At the age of 4 months, the animals can already take care of themselves. Sexual maturity occurs at 10 months. In early autumn, the children leave the female and she begins to look for a partner to create new offspring. For a year, one female can bring 2-3 broods.

The main enemy of affection is a wild cat. Also, the animal can become the prey of an owl, an owl, a buzzard.

The animal lives no more than 5 years.

Weasel and man

For many villagers, the weasel that has appeared on the territory does not promise anything good. She can attack small broods and adult poultry. This happens especially often in winter. The skins of these animals are very small, so weasel hunting is not very popular. If you shoot an animal with a gun, the bullets will completely pierce the fur, and the blood from the wounds will discolor.

Even in ancient times, the weasel lived side by side with people as a pet. In ancient Rome, it was used to hunt mice. But when the rats bred, this animal could not cope with them and was replaced by cats.

Currently hunting for caress not conducted. Previously, up to 20 thousand skins were mined per year. Several centuries ago, weasel was the object of superstition. Some signs were associated with her. In some regions, they said that if this animal wound up on the farm, then this is good, while in others it was considered a bad sign.

If you like our site tell your friends about us!

The one who watched this animal, first of all, paid attention to the fact that it is nimble and agile. His curious muzzle appears here and there. For the ability to deftly climb, the animal, apparently, received the Russian name, first lazka, and then weasel. This behavior of the animal is due to its size and body shape. The animal is the smallest predator on Earth. Females, like other mustelids, are smaller - their body length is usually about 12 centimeters and they weigh an average of 30 grams; males - 40 - 50 grams, and they are two or three centimeters larger. A characteristic feature of the species is its enormous individual variability, which is rarely found in such sizes in mammals. Large animals can exceed the weight of small ones by seven to eight times.

The shape of the weasel's body is peculiar, there is something serpentine in it. The head is small, narrow and elongated, the muzzle with rounded small ears and beady eyes is blunt, the neck is long, the body is thin and elongated, the legs are short. Among the stones, in heaps of brushwood, in burrows, the weasel scurries quickly and deftly, seeding with its paws, which makes it seem as if the animal is reptiles. On the ground and snow, it moves in jumps, strongly arching its back.

The Latin name of the weasel is translated as "snowy" and reflects another feature of the animal. In winter, it is all, with the exception of the tip of the nose and bulging eyes, pure white. In the spring, when the snow melts, only the underside of the body remains white, and the upper body acquires a chocolate-brown color. In the southern zones, where there is no snow, weasel does not change color.

The animal is very widely distributed. Its range covers all of Europe, the Mediterranean islands, the Azores, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Asia Minor, northern Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Mongolia and China, the Korean Peninsula, Japan and the northern half of North America. With such a wide distribution, the weasel combines an absolutely amazing geographical variability. Therefore, scientists are constantly arguing about the taxonomy of a species, dividing it into several separate species, then into a huge number of subspecies.

In the Soviet Union, weasel is found throughout the territory. She lives in the tundra and taiga, in the forest-steppe and steppe, in the semi-desert and mountains. It is rare to see the animal itself, but in winter you can always notice the characteristic traces left by this animal in the snow. Large zigzags are visible on clearings and edges, in the field, around haystacks or stacks of straw. The most common form of a weasel track, like that of other mustelids, is the so-called two-point pattern - slightly obliquely set prints of the left and right front paws, into which the hind legs exactly fall when jumping. Sometimes the weasel is shallow, one or two centimeters, goes under the snow, passes half a meter under it, and then again moves in jumps. By drawing on the snow, you can restore what the animal did - an invaluable service to a zoologist who studies the behavior of an animal in natural conditions. Often, for example, one has to see traces of a weasel hunting for voles, which in the middle lane are the main food for the animal. Around a small mink going under the snow, vole and weasel paw prints, traces of fuss, and finally, a drop of blood. From this place, the weasel drags its prey - to the right or to the left of the predator's track, you can see the path left by the caught vole. Such a trail usually leads directly to the weasel's hideout, although the hunting ground may be located quite far from it. How she chooses the right direction remains a mystery, but once again proves that the weasel perfectly remembers the site on which she lives, knows all its nooks and crannies and is perfectly oriented.

Often weasel is found near a person’s dwelling, if there is food for her there. In the old days, there was a belief that at night the brownie torments horses standing in the stable - braids their manes, and sometimes brings them to "white sweat". They fought with the brownie: they kept a goat in the stable, which, as it were, the evil spirits are afraid of. It turned out that the brownie is none other than a weasel. She runs along the scruffs and backs of horses who are terribly afraid of her, trying to throw off themselves and sweat a lot from this. Weasel, clinging to the mane, so as not to fall off, licks the protruding sweat, receiving the necessary mineral salts.

Weasel is a highly specialized predator: it feeds mainly on mouse-like rodents. These are different types of voles and mice, sometimes small hamsters. Therefore, weasel can serve as an indicator of the abundance of rodents. Occasionally, she eats frogs and fish, small birds and their eggs, land mollusks. Extremely rare, and possibly doubtful, cases are described when weasels attacked large prey - hares, hazel grouses and even capercaillie. She allegedly clung to them with her teeth and held on until they fell dead. It was believed that the weasel destroys rodents tens and hundreds of times more than it can eat.

A careful study of the nutrition of these predators in natural conditions and in laboratories gave completely different results. Regardless of the number of rodents, the weasel hunts and eats only one or two voles or mice per day. Under laboratory conditions, with an abundance of rodents in animals, the predatory reflex faded very quickly. And if in the first two or three days they killed any rodent that turned up, then after a few days, as in nature, one or two mice, without touching the rest. The predator kills its prey with a stereotypical bite in the back of the head. But this feature of behavior is not innate, but is acquired at a young age. While the animal is learning the rules of hunting, he himself is badly bitten.

Hunting for rodents is helped by the small size and the ability of weasels to penetrate holes and snowy passages. Having eaten the victim, she often captures her shelter. She often settles in voids under the roots of trees or stumps, in the hollows of fallen trunks, sometimes she arranges housing under a haystack or in a stack of straw.

Until now, among scientists it is widely believed that weasel leads a solitary lifestyle. It is believed that since these predators are so closely related to rodents and eat so many of them, it means that they must compete with each other for food and cannot live close to each other. In fact, everything seems to be much more complicated.

Although communication between animals is not so frequent, nevertheless they exist, which is quite natural and necessary for the life of any kind. The most characteristic between caresses, especially unfamiliar, aggressive contacts. The animals that meet for the first time cling to each other's necks with their teeth, kick with short paws and, squealing, roll on the ground with a ball. Such fights among weasels are especially often observed when studying their behavior in laboratories. In nature, they probably occur less often. After all, the animals living in some territory are familiar with each other and try to avoid aggressive collisions. This is also confirmed by experimental observations.

Weasels planted in large enclosures establish a dominance-submission relationship after fights. Contacts between them become rare. This is due to the fact that the animals perfectly remember each other, begin to leave their shelters at different times and try not to catch each other's eyes. In nature, in this regard, everything is much simpler - it is possible to disperse within certain limits, which, apparently, weasels do.

However, in such a situation, the problem of communication between animals arises. If you fight every time you meet, then how do you know who lives nearby - a male or a female, an adult animal or a young one? Such information is especially important during the breeding season, when the meeting of weasels of different sexes is necessary and inevitable. Nature has found a way. Animals have developed marking behavior. They leave smell marks, thanks to which they can receive all the necessary information about each other. Most of all such odor marks are left by animals during the breeding season, and different animals - in the same places.

Weasels, like many members of the weasel family, are lazy animals. They are only active for an hour or two during the day. During this time, the animals usually walk up to two kilometers, manage to catch a mouse, do all their business and again climb into a warm shelter. In spring, they become more active, move more, contact each other more often. In March, the animals begin the rut period, which can last until the end of summer. Females before the very appearance of cubs or with tiny babies are most often found in late April - May and in August. Weasels bring two offspring per season. In a brood, there are usually from three to eight crumbs weighing up to one and a half grams each. They are born blind, deaf and completely helpless. A month later, their eyes and ear canals open, the kids begin to play, become more mobile. From half a month they still continue to suck their mother, but the basis of nutrition is already the meat of rodents. mAt first, the entire brood follows its mother, examining the immediate surroundings of its native nest, then moves further and further away from it. The following reflex, which is highly developed in animals at this time, does not allow the brood to scatter and get lost. Gradually, it weakens, the animals begin to travel independently. At the age of three months, the animals leave their mother and begin an independent life.

Weasel fur, unlike many other mustelids, is not of industrial importance, and therefore there is no special prey for this animal. Weasels only accidentally fall into traps or traps when catching other animals - ermines, polecats, minks, moles.

In the old days, a lot of superstitions and prejudices were associated with affection. In some cases, it was believed that she brings happiness to the house. Others treated her very badly. They said, for example, that a weasel cannot be called by name, otherwise it will pursue a person and jinx him. If the weasel looked at someone, they expected illness, and if she snorted, it was even worse.

Fortunately, now the attitude towards the animal has changed. Now no one believes that affection can jinx someone. And no one doubts the great benefits that this animal brings to a person by destroying rodents.

V. Rozhnov, candidate of biological sciences.

Young naturalist 1989 - 1

Weasel ordinary, or simply weasel - a small predatory animal (family mustelids), found in Europe, North America and northern Asia. This furry animal lives in forests, on the outskirts of fields, along the banks of reservoirs, in swamps, in deserts and steppes. Sometimes it settles near human habitation, but considers the snowy belt of mountains and the polar desert unsuitable for habitation.

The body of the weasel is elongated, from 11 to 21 cm long. Its weight is not more than 100 grams, but this does not prevent it from having the glory of one of the most bloodthirsty predators. The weasel has many enemies: foxes, wolves, raccoon dogs, badgers, hawks, golden eagles, owls and owls - all of them are not averse to eating a nimble animal. But the toothy agile beauty does not give up without a fight: she can easily gnaw through the throat of the offender, deftly slipping out of his grip at the last moment.

In color, the weasel is similar to the ermine. In summer, the upper body is brownish-brown, with dark spots near the corners of the mouth. The belly, paws from the inside and chest are snow-white. In winter, the body turns completely white. Only in the south, where there is little snow, the fur color of the animal does not change.

Weasel is an excellent swimmer, runs fast and climbs trees beautifully. She needs all this to overtake her favorite prey: shrews, mice, moles, young rabbits, snakes, lizards, crayfish, small fish, insects. It happens that she destroys bird nests and robs chicken coops. It hunts at night, moving quickly in the dark with long jumps.

It is interesting that, having settled close to a person, weasel will never harm the “owner”, but the whole district suffers from its outrages. However, she also does not disdain domestic mice and rats, which helps people a lot.

In nature, the weasel lives in the burrows of the rodents killed by it. He doesn’t dig his own, why, if there are ready ones? The bottom of the burrow is covered with dry grass, moss, leaves.

In a dry, clean and spacious burrow, the female brings from four to eight cubs. She touchingly cares for her offspring and fiercely defends them in danger. At the age of 4 months, the babies are already independent, and their mother can start mating again. In a good year, a female weasel has 2-3 broods.

Weasels and hori - features of care and maintenance at home.

Video: Weasel is played with a hand

weasel animal only the name is so tender. It seems that the owner of such a name should be tender, white and fluffy. To some extent, if you look at its outer shell, it is so.

And on the other hand, if you look, you can see a small and beautiful creature, distinguished by its bloodthirstiness and aggressiveness, more than once seen committing robberies on people's household plots.

Feature and habitat

weasel- This is a small and predatory creature that is a thunderstorm for many representatives of the planet's fauna. The average length of the animal is not more than 18 cm, its weight is not more than 100 g. The weasel's body is characterized by increased flexibility and resourcefulness. This beautiful animal has much in common with the ermine, the same body structure and fur color.

They differ only in parameters (the ermine is slightly larger), in a different color of the weasel's tail and its length, the weasel's tail is shorter. By the way, at the base of the weasel's tail there are special glands that, at the right time, can emit a disgusting smell.

On the small paws of the animal, sharp claws can be observed. Ears are rounded and small in size on its oblong head. Bifurcation is clearly visible on the nose of the animal. Laki's neck is long. When you look at it, you feel the power.

Weasel eyes resemble black convex beads, they are large. It is difficult to distinguish a female weasel from a male by external data. The only thing that helps in this is their size.

Females are 30% smaller than males. Weasels have beautiful fur. It has a short length and fits snugly to her body. Fur color changes with the season. In the winter season, the weasel acquires a white fur color.

In summer it turns brown and only in some places it remains white. The quality of the pile does not change with the seasons. Weasels living in southern places always remain brown, regardless of the time of year. This cute mustelid animal is not only aggressive, but also fearless. Weasel in rare cases can flee.

Most often, when meeting with a potential enemy, she initially becomes in an appropriate frightening pose, and if this does not help, she grabs the enemy with her teeth with all her might. This fight is hard to break.

There were cases when, in an unequal battle with an opponent of a much larger size, the weasel simply died under its weight. But at the same time, she managed to gnaw the throat of her enemy. Fights of males are accompanied by a loud squeal.

Animals prefer to lead a solitary lifestyle, this should be taken into account by those who want buy affection. They mark the boundaries of their existence in the wild with the help of odor traces.

Despite such small size, the weasel is a very dangerous creature. Thanks to its ability to move quickly, deftly dodge, skillfully climb trees, weasel can come out unscathed from any situation. In addition, she is an excellent swimmer.

You can meet weasel in many territories, its habitat is simply extensive - in Australia, America, Korea, Asia, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Europe.

This hardy creature can take root anywhere. The only exceptions are highlands and polar deserts. In some places, the animal locates its dwelling near human settlements. At the same time, weasel does not make any special structures, trying to master and ennoble what is.

For this, barns, rodent burrows, ruins, hollows located below, laying firewood, places between stones and tree roots are excellent. For the improvement of its nesting place, the weasel uses fern leaves, chestnut, moss and dry vegetation.

An interesting fact from the life of a weasel is that in one area she may have more than one permanent home. In case of danger or if someone suddenly frightened her, the weasel immediately changes its place of deployment. The animal becomes especially cautious when cubs are near it.

Villagers treat affection differently. On the one hand, they should thank her for the mass extermination of mice that eat crops. On the other hand, weasel can often visit them in the household yard and steal a bird.

It is worth noting that chickens are a delicacy for these animals. At the same time, affection simply loses all sense of proportion. As soon as she gets into the chicken coop, she can strangle literally all of its inhabitants. She steals eggs with great pleasure. People try in every way get rid of pet affection.

Character and lifestyle

When choosing a habitat, the weasel stops at those places where there are a lot of mice and other living creatures that are tasty for it. Prefers to lead a sedentary lifestyle. In females, this is obtained throughout the year.

Males, on the other hand, have to leave their permanent home in search of a partner. To move weasels make small jumps. You can often see how they stand on their hind legs. Thus, predators look around.

The burrows of the animal are built in the form of a labyrinth, where there are many entrances and exits. Due to the diminutiveness of this small predator, it finds its victims right in their homes. In winter, it is not difficult for a weasel to track down a rodent under the snow.

For hunting weasel most often chooses night time. This helps her agility, agility, excellent ability to swim, climb trees and run. When attacked, she is daring, bold and bloodthirsty. Thus, in a few words, description of affection. She prefers to lead a terrestrial lifestyle.

With the help of jumping, the weasel tries to bypass unprotected territories. If necessary, during the day the animal can overcome 1-2, or even more kilometers. In winter, he uses snow voids for movement without problems.

Nutrition

About, what do weasel animals eat it's easy to guess. Her diet includes all representatives of mouse-like rodents. With great appetite she eats mice, rats, shrews and moles.

Very fond of weasel, rabbits. She will never refuse to make a hole in the egg and drink all its contents. When the animal does not have enough food, weasel does not disdain, lizards, medium-sized and other amphibians.

He prefers to prepare products for himself. You can often find at least 30 mice in a weasel dwelling. The weasel's way of neutralizing its prey practically does not change; it digs its sharp teeth into its neck. Such a fight is very difficult to separate.

Reproduction and lifespan

This issue is still under study. From what we know, we know that females can be pregnant both in summer and in winter. In males and females, pairing occurs only during the mating season.

The gestation period lasts from a month to two. As a result, 3-10 cubs are born. A pattern was noticed - the more mice appear in nature, the more babies turn out to be in the litter of weasels.

For 8 weeks, babies eat exclusively mother's milk. After 14 days, the family gradually breaks up. The female simply drives her babies away from herself, who, willy-nilly, have to enter adulthood.

The average lifespan of animals in the wild is about 3-5 years. Weasel at home lives half as long. The price of affection democratic. One young individual can cost no more than 5 thousand rubles.

Weasel belongs to the weasel family. It lives in Europe, including the Scandinavian Peninsula, Siberia, Mongolia, northeastern regions of China, the Far East, Japan, North America up to Alaska. The animal lives in both mountainous and lowland areas, is found in forests and fields. It can settle in hollows of trees, under stones, in burrows, in outbuildings of people. This species is considered the smallest predator in the order of carnivores.

The body of the animal is thin, elongated and extremely flexible. The eyes are large and protruding. The limbs are short. The tail in length reaches 30% of the body length. At its base there are glands that produce a sharp and unpleasant odor. Paws from below are covered with hair and have dark sharp claws. The fur is thick, dense and short. In animals living in the northern regions, it is soft and silky. But their southern counterparts are rougher.

The color of the fur in summer varies from dark chocolate to sandy. The throat, chest and belly are white. The paws on the inside have the same color. In winter, the color of the fur changes to white. In rare cases, it is slightly diluted with dark hairs. The size of the animals varies depending on the regions of habitat. Males are noticeably larger than females. The length of males is 13-26 cm. Females reach a length of 11-20 cm. The weight of males reaches a maximum of 250 grams, in females it does not exceed 120 grams.

Reproduction and lifespan

Pregnancy lasts 35-37 days. Cubs are born in April-July. There are an average of 6 newborns in a litter. They are naked, blind and deaf. Already on the 4th day they are overgrown with fluffy white wool. The lactation period lasts 3 weeks. Only the female takes care of the offspring. At the 3rd month, babies become independent. Sexual maturity occurs at the age of 4 months. But males begin to mate only in the 2nd year of life. In the wild, the weasel lives no more than 9 years. There is an opinion that the maximum life expectancy is 30 years.

Behavior and nutrition

These animals are territorial. The territory of the male is adjacent to several territories of the females. Representatives of the species do not dig their holes. They usually nest in mole burrows. They make chambers for rest, the birth of offspring and the storage of food supplies. The animal is agile, fast and courageous. He is a great tree climber, swims and runs well. Moves on the ground by jumping. The length of the jump reaches 35 cm.

For small rodents, weasels pose a serious threat. These are moles, mice, rabbits, hamsters. Representatives of the species attack birds, frogs, snakes, and lizards. The diet also includes insects. Hunting is carried out both during the day and at night. The average daily food intake is 35 grams. Exterminating rodents, the animal brings undoubted benefits to people. At the same time, he likes to visit chicken coops, which the owners do not like. But, in any case, the benefits of this type are greater than the harm.