Marbled Polecat (Vormela peregusna)
Classification Range Description Diet Reproduction Behavior Threats Status Links
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Subphylum Vertebrata
Class Mammalia
Subclass Theria
Infraclass Eutheria
Order Carnivora
Family Mustelidae
Subfamily Mustelina
Genus Vormela
Species: Vormela peregusna
Subspecies: V. p. peregusna and V. p. syriaca
The Marbled Polecat has a vast region, although it is one or the more rare mustelids. It can be found throughout Europe and Asia, from the Middle East to Siberia to Mongolia. The marbled polecat lives in the grasslands, desert steppes, and meadow steppes of Eurasia.
Description:
The marbled polecat is named for its varied coat pattern of yellow, brown, red, black, and white. The marbled polecat's face has a distinctive mask appearance of black and white, and its back has a saddle-shape of colors. It also has a dense, bushy tail and short legs and long claws, which enable it to chase after rodents and to burrow. Like most mustelids, marbled polecats can emit a strong odor, used for marking their territory and warning off threats. They are small animals, not reaching more than forty-five centimeters in length and weighing only one to three pounds.
The marbled polecat eats a variety of foods, consisting of beetles, snails, rodents, small birds, lizards, eggs, small rabbits, fish, and sometimes fruit. Its population will vary depending on the availability of these food supplies.
Reproduction:
In breeding season, males will sometimes change colors, from yellow to orange, making their colors brighter and more vivid. The normally solitary polecat will join up only during the breeding season during March to May. The marbled polecat has delayed implantation, causing them to not give birth for eight to eleven months after mating. Their actual gestation period, though, lasts for forty days, or about two months. They can have up to eight young in a litter. The female polecat cares for her young in a nest of grass and leaves in her burrow. The kits' eyes open when they are forty days old, but they are able to start eating solids at thirty days. The young stay with the mother for about three months. Females reach sexual maturity at just three months of age, but males take more time to grow larger, reaching sexual maturity at one year.
Behavior:
The marbled polecats are mostly nocturnal and crepuscular, although they are sometimes active during the day. The marbled polecat will burrow underground, either in burrows that it digs itself or old burrows from previous animals, where it will have an area off the main burrow for storing food. Their sense of smell is well adapted for finding rodents and other food. When threatened, they will stand on their hind legs with their tails in the air and their teeth showing, growl, and spray their scents at the threat. They are actually good climbers, but they stay mostly on the ground. One study done on wild polecats found that they travel a good distance at night. They were recorded traveling one kilometer per night, rarely taking the same path each time.
Threats:
The marbled polecat is sometimes hunted and accidentally caught in traps. Because the polecat will prey on poultry, it has become a nuisance to farmers. It also has to contend with other animals, such as foxes, martens, badgers, and forest cats for food. It doesn't have many other natural predators though, due to its foul-smelling deterrent.
The marbled polecat is rare through much of its range, though not listed as endangered. Its population varies and fluctuates based on food availability. It is classified by Russia and IUCN as vulnerable, due to the grassland areas being replaced by agriculture, which in turn reduces their food sources since the rodents are being eliminated.
For more information, contact Small carnivore TAG education liaison.
Page created by Cara Brown, Pensacola Junior College Zoo Animal Technology Program, Fall 2005
