WEASEL
			Phylum: Class: Order: Family: Species: Chordata Mammalia Carnivora Mustelidae Mustela frenata (long-tailed) Mustela nivalis (least)

Weasels are short-legged, slender animals with a reddish-brown shade of fur and white underparts. Their appearance is similar to that of the stoat. While closely related, they are smaller - about 8 inches long (20 cm.,) and they do not have black-tipped tails. Like stoats, some weasels turn white in the winter, in the northern regions.

The common weasel is found in Asia, Europe and North Africa, and is a ferocious killer. They are found in nearly every kind of habitat, including hedgerows, rocky country and even in towns and cities. A great climber, the weasel moves swiftly on the ground, and mainly hunts at night, preying on small birds and rodents, including rats twice its own size.

In North America there are two species of weasel. The long-tailed weasel, which is about 12 inches (30 cm) in length and cannot climb, and the least weasel . As its name suggests, the least weasel is the smallest in size being only about 4 inches (10 cm) long. Some scientists consider the least weasel as a subspecies of the common weasel.

Weasel mating season occurs somewhere between April to May. Unlike other mustelidae family members, there is no delay in the gestation process, and the kittens are born approximately six weeks later. The females usually bear two litters in a session.