Vormela peregusna

Geographic Range

Marbled polecats are found in areas of southeast Europe, throughout the middle east, and in parts of Asia. Its range extends as far north as Russia and as far east as China. This species is rare across its considerable range. In the middle east, Marbled polecats occur in highest densities in Israel.

• Biogeographic Regions
• palearctic palearctic
  • native native

Habitat

As a generalist, the marbled polecat can occupy many habitats within its range. They are commonly found in treeless prairies (steppes) and semi-desert areas. These semi-arid areas are generally located at sea level to 3000 m in elevation. In Yugoslavia, marbled polecats are also found in riparian areas and mountain meadows, and in its southern range in Egypt they can be found in sandy areas with some vegetation (Gorsuch and Lariviere, 2005).

• Habitat Regions
• terrestrial terrestrial

• Terrestrial Biomes
• desert or dune desert or dune
• savanna or grassland savanna or grassland
• scrub forest scrub forest

• Other Habitat Features
• agricultural agricultural
• riparian riparian

Physical Description

Marbled polecats have a unique coat that distinguishes it from its relatives, striped polecats , which are black with white stipes, and European polecats , which are mostly brown. Marbled polecats have a black/brown underbelly and a "marbled" dorsal side composed of black/brown, yellow/orange, and red hair. Marbled polecats have a long furry tail, which is black and yellow in color. A large white band spans across their forehead, and their eyes are covered in a black mask. Their white round ears stand out above their head.

Marbled polecats have short legs and long claws used for digging burrows and for digging out prey. Claws on their front limbs are longer, up to 16.7 mm, than claws on their hind limbs. They have 34 sharp teeth that also assist in capturing prey. Head-body measurements of this species range from 288 mm to 477 mm, and their tail adds 145 mm to 201 mm to their total length. Male marbled polecats tend to be heavier than females, up to 715 g in Siberia, but mass varies greatly throughout their range. Females are generally 295 to 600 g, while males are 320 to 715g.

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic endothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• male larger

Reproduction

Although marbled polecats are solitary, this is not the case during the mating season. Little information is otherwise available regarding the mating systems of this species.

Marbled polecats come together in the spring to breed (March-June). In captivity, gestation lasts 40 days, but this is often much longer in the wild; gestation may last 8 to 11 months, as marbled polecats exhibit delayed implantation, waiting for favorable environmental conditions to give birth. Young are born in late January to early March and may stay with their mother into June. Litter sizes range from 4 to 8 cubs. The cubs are be able to eat solid food before their eyes open at 38 to 40 days. At 50 to 54 days the young are weaned and disperse soon after 61 to 68 days. The cubs reach full size around 82 days of age. Predatory behavior occurs at an early age. Females mate during their first spring and are able to carry young the following winter. Males reach sexual maturity around one year of age and find mates after their first year.

• Key Reproductive Features
• semelparous semelparous
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• delayed implantation delayed implantation

Delayed implantation allows female marbled polecats to select the best environmental conditions in which to give birth. Although cubs feed from their mother until they are weaned, they display predatory behavior and are able to eat solid food before they are weaned. The cubs disperse around 61 to 68 days although not yet fully grown.

• Parental Investment
• female parental care female parental care
• pre-hatching/birth
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-weaning/fledging
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • female

Lifespan/Longevity

Little information is available regarding the lifespan of wild marbled polecats. One captive individual, however, was reported to live for 8 years and 11 months. Marbled polecats infested with ticks and/or fleas may become limited in lifespan.

Behavior

Marbled polecats are solitary and generally only tolerate the opposite sex during mating season. They are mostly active during mornings and evenings. Their activities are limited during the day, and they seek shelter unless basking in the sunlight. In captivity, marbled polecats find dark places to rest during daylight hours. Marbled polecats dig dens themselves, but are opportunistic and may make use of den systems of their prey, such as large ground squirrels or great gerbils . Some marbled polecats may use dens for storing food. Marbled polecats do not normally climb or jump, though they can sit or stand on their hind legs. When threatened, they put on a display of aggression by standing their fur on end, arching their back, and raising their tail. They also hiss in aggression and emit long shrieks of submission. Marbled polecats aggressively protect their home range from other polecats and will stand their ground even when humans approach.

• Key Behaviors
• crepuscular crepuscular
• motile motile
• solitary solitary
• territorial territorial

Home Range

Marbled polecats have well-traveled home ranges of 0.5 to 0.6 square kilometers that they aggressively protect from other polecats.

Communication and Perception

Marbled polecats have a keen sense of smell, and they emit a strong odor when threatened. In the family Mustelidae , scent marking is the most common form of communication (Wund, 2005). Little information is otherwise available regarding communication of this typically solitary species. When threatened, they emit aggressive hisses. They may also give alarm cries, grunts, and shrieks of submission.

• Communication Channels
• visual visual
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

• Other Communication Modes
• scent marks scent marks

• Perception Channels
• tactile tactile
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

Marbled polecats are generalists and opportunistic predators (Ben-David, Pellis, and Pellis 1991). Their diet includes a range of rodents such as great gerbils , house mice , ground squirrels , birds, lizards, and even some insects (Gorsuch and Lariviere, 2005; Randall et al., 2005). Predatorial strategy of marbled polecats varies depending on the size and defensiveness of the prey. Marbled polecats approach their prey from the side. They bite small prey on their midsection and large prey on the back of the neck. If their prey struggles, the throat is often targeted.(Ben-David, Pellis, and Pellis, 1991).

• Primary Diet
• carnivore carnivore
  • eats terrestrial vertebrates

• Animal Foods
• birds
• mammals
• amphibians
• reptiles

Predation

Although there are no recorded predators of marbled polecats, they display a defensive/ aggressive posture when threatened. They raise their tail, arch their back, and may bare their teeth while growling or hissing. Marbled polecats, like other mustelids , can release a foul smelling odor from an anal gland, which is possibly used as a defensive mechanism. Many marbled polecats are killed by vehicles.

Ecosystem Roles

Marbled polecats help control rodent populations in some parts of their range (Gorsuch and Lariviere, 2005). This species may also perform communal hunting with red fox . Marbled polecats are often used as hosts by ticks and fleas .

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

Historically, marbled polecats were kept in shops to help control rodent problems in Kabul. They are on rare occasions kept as pets. Marbled polecats are occasionally trapped in small numbers for their fur, though it has no market value.

• Positive Impacts
• pet trade pet trade
• controls pest population

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

Marbled polecats may prey on poultry and may also take cheese and meat from humans.

Conservation Status

Populations of marbled polecats are declining in many areas of their range, in which they are already uncommon. Habitat destruction, desertification, and the changing of natural habitat to farmland have led to a large reduction in population size (Tikhonov et al. 2008). Human reduction of rodent populations as well as road traffic and hunting are also reducing populations of marbled polecats. Additionally, this species can become infected with ticks and fleas, which is an increasing problem.

Other Comments

Although currently six sub-species have been suggested within Vormela peregusna , most of the infra-specific distinctions have been attributed to pelt and region variation (Tikhonov et al., 2008). One study found high genetic homogeneity among several marbled polecats, and their mitochondrial DNA showed no distinctions among specimens from varying regions in their geographic range (Rozhnov et al., 2008). Although this species is distributed over a vast area, the similarities in their genetic makeup remain. This is possibly due to their historically recent expansion (Rozhnov et al., 2008).

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Tyler Petroelje (author), Northern Michigan University, John Bruggink (editor), Northern Michigan University, Gail McCormick (editor), Animal Diversity Web Staff.

References

Ben-David, M. 1998. Delayed implantation in the marbled polecat, Vormela peregusna syriaca (Carnivora, Mustelidae): evidence from mating, parturition, and post-natal growth.. Mammalia , 62: 269–283.

Ben-David, M., S. Pellis, V. Pellis. 1991. Feeding Habits and Predatory Behaviour in the Marbled Polecat ( Vormela Peregusna Syriaca ): I. Killing Methods in Relation To Prey Size and Prey Behaviour. Behaviour , 118: 127-143.

Gorsuch, W., S. Larivière. 2005. Vormela peregusna . Mammalian Species , 779: 1-5.

King, C., H. Kummer, J. Birks. 2007. ""Weasels, Mink, and Polecats" The Encyclopedia of Mammals . Ed. David W. Macdonald." (On-line). Accessed February 24, 2009 at http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t227.e154-ss4 .

Randall, J., K. Rogovin, P. Parker, J. Eimesc. 2005. Flexible social structure of a desert rodent, Rhombomys opimus : philopatry, kinship, and ecological constraints. Behavioral Ecology , 16: 961-973.

Rozhnov, V., A. Abramov. 2006. Sexual Dimorphism of Marbled Polecat Vormela peregusna (Carnivora: Mustelidae). Biology Bulletin , 33: 144-148.

Rozhnov, V., I. Meschersky, A. Abramov. 2008. Geographical Variation of the Marbled Polecat Vormela peregusna (Carnivora: Mustelidae): Molecular Genetic Study. Doklady Biological Sciences , 418: 27-29.

Tikhonov, A., P. Cavallini, T. Maran, A. Krantz, J. Herrero, G. Giannatos, M. Stubbe, J. Conroy, B. Kryštufek, A. Abramov, C. Wozencraft. 2008. " Vormela peregusna . In: IUCN 2008." (On-line). 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.. Accessed February 01, 2009 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/29680 .

Wund, M. 2005. "Mustelidae" (On-line). Animal Diversity Web. Accessed March 12, 2009 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Mustelidae.html. .