Mustela nivalis
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The least weasel (Mustela nivalis), little weasel, common weasel, or simply weasel is the smallest member of the genus Mustela, family Mustelidae and order Carnivora. It is native to Eurasia, North America and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand, Malta, Crete, the Azores, and São Tomé. It is classified as least concern by the IUCN, due to its wide distribution and large population throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Eighteen subspecies are recognised.
The least weasel varies greatly in size over its range. The body is slender and elongated, and the legs and tail are relatively short. The colour varies geographically, as does the pelage type and length of tail. The dorsal surface, flanks, limbs and tail of the animal are usually some shade of brown while the underparts are white. The line delineating the boundary between the two colours is usually straight. At high altitudes and in the northern part of its range, the coat becomes pure white in winter.
Small rodents form the largest part of the least weasel's diet, but it also kills and eats rabbits, other mammals, and occasionally birds, birds' eggs, fish and frogs. Males mark their territories with olfactory signals and have exclusive home ranges which may intersect with or include several female ranges. Least weasels use pre-existing holes to sleep, store food and raise their young. Breeding takes place in the spring and summer, and there is a single litter of about six kits which are reared exclusively by the female. Due to its small size and fierce nature, the least weasel plays an important part in the mythology and legend of various cultures. Wikipedia →
Uncertain0:33
Spain · 2026
© Jose Manuel Unanue · XC1146321 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Recording0:03
France · 2025
© nopelm · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:10
Ukraine · 2025
© Олександр Гриб · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zoo Sibiu | 🇷🇴 Romania | |
| 2 | British Wildlife Centre | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | AQUA Akvarium & Dyrepark | 🇩🇰 Denmark | |
| 4 | Zoo Samara | 🇷🇺 Russia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Least Weasel sighting in Calgary on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 22nd most-seen of the 25 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Least Weasel in Calgary on a given day, against under 5% in December to October, the lowest months. That is one of Calgary's driest months, with about 25 mm of rain against 120 mm in June.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Least Weasel sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 7
Of the 7 cities where we can rate Least Weasel sightings, Calgary ranks 7th at under 5%. The best odds are in Cairo (Egypt, about 30%), Leeds (United Kingdom, about 10%) and Moscow (Russia, about 10%).
Same order: Carnivora
The closest relatives of the Least Weasel that you can see in Calgary (order Carnivora, Carnivorans) are Coyote (about 30%), Bobcat (about 10%) and Striped Skunk (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Least Weasel is recorded against all the mammals logged in Calgary (7 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
