An Observation of a wild weasel, Mustela erminea, moving its pups

Abstract

Although the reproductive behavior of weasels has been studied in captivity and movements have been studied at lower latitudes, little is known about reproduction of weasels in the high arctic. We observed a den near a tundra stream. A litter of four, apparently born in May, was full size by the end of the growing season, Notable behaviors of the adult included retrieval of a cached lemming, leading pups from one rockpile to another carrying the lemming, and carrying a pup in the mouth. The short growing season of the arctic may explain why M. erminea has only one litter per season in contrast to M. nivalis.