There’s yet another curious sighting going around on the socials this week: a sleek animal with a long tail slipping past the trail cam, leaving folks to wonder if it’s a cougar, a giant rat, a jaguarundi, or some weaselesque creature. My reputable sources say it’s a long-tailed weasel and are thrilling with this sighting as this is a rare find, despite their range covering most of the contiguous United States.
I’m thrilling too. I like weasels. I like their slinky bodies, their beady black eyes, their playful pounces, and their stealth. Precious little killing machines, they are.
Weasels eat between 20%-50% of their bodyweight per day. This constant culling of small mammals results in a harmonious balance of plants and animals within their communities. Disruption of weasel populations could have cascading detrimental effects on the health of the vegetation they serve, according to research published by the International Society of Zoological Sciences (2019). More reason to like weasels.
We have three weasels here in North America: the long-tailed weasel, the short-tailed weasel (ermine), and the least weasel. Ranging in length from about 16 inches to a mere 8, all are feisty, hungry, and valued for their silky fur.
Sadly, as of the last century, our weasel population is in decline. Their slipping numbers went unnoticed for some time. The first indication of this was that weasel harvesting, a euphemism for trapping and killing, brought in fewer and fewer weasels, but that only made sense. As humans have evolved a more heightened sensibility toward animals our thirst to wear their fur has waned.
Still, the weasels’ decline caught the attention of Dr. David Jachowski of Clemson University, who set out to explore our weasel population size more thoroughly. Data from citizen science projects like iNaturalist and various trail cam networks found that weasels simply weren’t showing up. In short, the weasel numbers in this country have dropped precipitously since 2000.
Where did the weasels go? Maybe they’re the victim of disease. Maybe they’re affected by shifts in habitat and prey communities heralded by climate change. All our weasel species have fur that changes to white in the winter. With less snow, maybe they’re more susceptible to predation. And maybe their numbers are down from a history of overharvesting, despite our enlightened collective fashion sense.
Thus, the search for the weasels began in earnest. Techniques currently employed in this weasel hunt include trained scat-sniffing dogs, baited sticks rigged with wire to collect hair samples, and baited track plates to collect tracks. Even with these creative methods in use, weasels remain elusive. Biologists can’t do it alone; weasel researchers need you.
This week, why not take to the woods and search for weasels? It’ll be a challenge. They are secretive, hiding under grasses, hedgerows, and rotting woodpiles. Keep your camera open, because they’re also fast. If you happen to get a picture, upload it to iNaturalist, an easy to use, free app that automatically identifies your find, and puts all your observations on a map.
For those who’d rather not go weasel searching but who have trail cams set up, and it sure seems there are a lot of trail cams out there, consider creating an account with Wildlife Insights. As stated on their website, “Wildlife Insights is combining field and sensor expertise, cutting edge technology and advanced analytics to enable people everywhere to share wildlife data and better manage wildlife populations.”
In exploring the collected data on the Wildlife Insights map, where over 52 million wildlife images have been shared, I see only one project in Alabama: Auburn University’s “Wehle Carcass Study.” They’ve identified eleven species in 12,772 images, with Turkey Vultures and American Black Vultures making up over 1600 of these images. That’s what happens when you’re setting up your trail cams to watch carcasses.
Curious, I popped over to Georgia and found that “Matt’s Pig Feeder Project” has attracted 274 images of American Black Bear, and 499 Wild Boar.
I then checked on Puma concolor (puma, mountain lion, cougar) sightings just to see if I’ve missed anything. So far, there’s nothing in the Southeast other than southern Florida, the Florida panther’s habitat. If someone has a cougar on their trial cam, it’s time to share those images with wildlife scientists.
There are a lot of folks out there seeing a lot of critters on their trail cams, through their binoculars, and with their eyeballs. I highly encourage everyone to download iNaturalist and set out to document some of these findings, from grasses to fungi to cougars to weasels. And if you’re enjoying your trail cam, why not name your site and add your project to Wildlife Insights?
Should you find something worth noting here in Alabama, be it a long-tailed weasel or a feline other than a housecat or a bobcat, please send your images to Outdoor Alabama/Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources at dcnr.wildlife@dcnr.alabama.gov.
Weasels are fascinating! They are quite the little animals. Ferocious far beyond their size, and elusive as can be, just as you note. It is sad their numbers have declined. It is not often I get to catch a glimpse of one, but thoroughly heartwarming. Also, I did not know there are three kinds of weasels in North America. Thank you for the info!
I can’t recall ever having a weasel sighting in my 71 years. Now I’m curious!