The "weasels" described
in Brian Jacques's books, are known as Common Weasels
in Britain. Believe it or not, this weasel
(Mustela nivalis) lives in North America!That's right, this weasel is called the Least Weasel
in Canada and America. Something for British readers
to note: they are three true weasels in North America;
they are the Long-Tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata)
which are not to be found in Europe, and therefore not
the books; the Short-Tailed Weasel(Mustela
erminea) which I will get to presently, and the one
here, the Least Weasel. The Least Weasel is known
by the fact that they are the smallest Carnivores
(about 5 to 7 inches) in the world, and that they
have a short unmarked tail, as can be seen
on Ferahgo here.
In the coldest parts of their range,
Least/Common Weasels change into an all-white
coat. The rest of the year they are brown above and white
below. It should be noted that until about 20 years
ago, the Least Weasel of N. America and the Common Weasel
of Europe were believed to be separate species. However,
due to the beauty of DNA testing, they were found to
be the same animal.
