THE POLECAT.[172]
In form this animal does not differ very markedly from the Marten, except for the fact that its head is broader, its snout blunter, and its tail very much shorter: the latter being about five and ahalf inches, while the head and body together are nearly a foot and a half long. The neck is considerably shorter, and the body stouter than in the Weasel and Stoat. The fur is made up of hairs of two kinds, the shorter woolly and of a yellowish colour, the longer black or brownish-black and shining. One of its most marked characters is its horrible stench. This is produced, like the scent of the Civets, in a pair of glands near the root of the tail, which secrete a yellowish creamy substance of the most fetid character.
SKULL OF POLECAT. (After Coues.)
SKULL OF POLECAT. (After Coues.)
The Polecat is also known as the Fitchet (Fitchew of Shakspere), Foumart, or Foulimart: the latter names are said to be a contraction of “Foul Marten,” thus distinguishing it from the Common or Sweet Marten, which is a comparatively inodorous animal. The name Polecat is probably a contraction of Polish Cat.
The Polecat is perhaps even more destructive than the other Mustelidæ, and is certainly a far greater plague to the farmer. Its ravage among Rabbits, Hares, and Partridges is immense, and if once it gets unobserved into a poultry-yard, the fate of a very considerable number of the inmates is sealed, as it possesses in a high degree the family love of slaughter for slaughter’s sake. It has been known to kill as many as sixteen Turkeys in a single night; and, indeed, it seems a point of honour with this bloodthirsty little creature to kill everything it can overpower, and to leave no survivors on its battlefields. It has, too, an unfortunate liking for eggs, as well as for game and poultry, and in this way alone does great harm to preserves. There are also many accounts of its fondness of fish; Bell also quotes an instance in which a female Polecat was pursued to her nest, and was found to have laid up, in a side hole, a store of food, consisting of forty Frogs and two Toads, all of which she had skilfully “pithed,” that is, bitten through the brain, so that, although retaining a certain amount of vitality, they were effectually prevented from running away!
1. POLECAT. 2. FERRET.
1. POLECAT. 2. FERRET.
The Polecat is found throughout Northern Europe, not extending southwards into the warmer parts of the Continent, but being quite at home in snow-covered regions. It is essentially, like the Marten, a sub-arctic and temperate animal.