Long Tailed Weasel (and not a ferret!) - 6/5/07

I spotted this little guy running around in a neighbor's orchard and caught some shots. As you can see, someone ID'd this as a long-tailed weasel and the description fits perfectly! Filmed in North San Diego County . . . I haven't seen one around here since 2000.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• long-tailed
• weasel

[WildlifeDen]

Actually it looks a lot closer to a Black Footed Ferret with that mask.

he's adorable though, darting all over like that ^_^

[ElKayeVideos]

I thought so at first, too, but they just don't seem to be native to our area (southern California, near Oceanside). I did see another one today! I always get excited when I see we still have weasels here. :)

[Polecat016]

It looks like a long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata).

[ElKayeVideos]

That's it, thanks! I was able to look that up online and the description fits perfectly. My neighbor whose orchard this was in was tickled to see my pics . . . says he's happy to have him around if he'll eat the rats, mice and gophers! :)

[squeekmousethecat]

Looks like a hard worker. These little guys can eat 40 percent of their body weight per day in rats, moles, etc., which makes them very useful little predators -- and, unfortunately, common victims of rodenticides, which is why using rat poison is so counterproductive. Weasels are very effective rodent-hunters. Nice video capture.

[bissellhouseinn]

I saw one today 9/13/11 running along the fence in the Wells Fargo Parking Lot at the corner of Lomas Santa Fe and Santa Helena in Solana Beach, North County San Diego at 8:15am. It was trapped on the parking lot side and trying to get back to the side with the drainage ditch, which it ultimately did after about 10 frantic minutes of searching for an opening. Cute as the dickens and a dozen people came in and out of the parking lot to bank at the ATM and completely missed it.

[liverpoolreds8]

If you ever see one of these little guys doing flips and looking like they're having a major seizure, it's because that's the distraction dance they do before they kill something.

These weasels are major killing machines and a lot more dangerous than people think.

[vulgarrc]

i just saw one of these little guys in Simi Valley today.. It blew my mind. I had no idea SoCal had these.

[giovanniboydbonanno]

@WildlifeDen it is a weasel of somekind, ferret is bigger usaly not as dusky colored as this one i see no black feet and the mask is oposit on a ferret

[standifird]

I have these in my yard too, I'm in Fallbrook.

[SuperSparten]

Thank you for the video.

[smartcrackers]

Using this to show my little one what a weasel is. Love the music, too! Thank you!

[smartcrackers]

Using this to show my little one what a weasel is. Love the music, too! Thank you!