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Stoat
The stoat (''Mustela erminea''), also known as the Eurasian ermine or ermine, is a species of mustelid native to Eurasia and the northern regions of North America. Because of its wide circumpolar distribution, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The name ermine () is used especially in its pure white winter coat of the stoat or its fur. Ermine fur was used in the 15th century by Catholic monarchs, who sometimes used it as the mozzetta cape. It has long been used on the ceremonial robes of members of the United Kingdom House of Lords. It was also used in capes on images such as the Infant Jesus of Prague. The stoat was introduced into New Zealand in the late 19th century to control rabbits. However, they have had a devastating effect on native bird populations; as such, the species was nominated as one of the world's top 100 "worst invaders". Etymology The root word for "stoat" is likely either the Dutch word ("bold") or the Gothic word (, "to push"). Accor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stoat In New Zealand
The stoat (''Mustela erminea'') was introduced species, introduced into New Zealand to control introduced rabbits and hares, but is now a major threat to the native bird population. The natural range of the stoat is limited to parts of the Northern Hemisphere. Immediately before human settlement, New Zealand did not have any land-based mammals apart from bats, but Polynesians, Polynesian and European settlers introduced a wide variety of animals. Rarely, in Southland, New Zealand, Southland, the fur of stoats has been reported to turn white, being the fur known as ermine, which adorns royal robes. Introductions of stoats The rabbit was introduced by European settlers as a food and game animal, and by the 1870s it was becoming a serious threat to the newly developed farming economy. Farmers began demanding the introduction of mustelids (including stoats) to control the rabbit plague. Warnings about the dangers to bird life from stoats were given by scientists in New Zealand and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Least Weasel
The least weasel (''Mustela nivalis''), little weasel, common weasel, or simply weasel is the smallest member of the genus ''Mustela,'' Family (biology), family Mustelidae and Order (biology), 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 Island, São Tomé. It is classified as least concern by the IUCN, due to its wide distribution and large population throughout the Northern Hemisphere. 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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mustela Richardsonii
The American ermine or American stoat (''Mustela richardsonii'') is a species of mustelid native to most of North America. The specific epithet refers to Arctic explorer and naturalist John Richardson. Description The American ermine has a body plan typical of weasels. It has short legs, a long body and neck, and a small triangular head with short round ears. It has a brown dorsum with a white venter (except during winter when the coat is fully white) and a short, black-tipped tail. Taxonomy It was long considered conspecific with the stoat (''M. erminea''), but a 2021 study found it to be a distinct species, forming distinct genetic clades from ''erminea''. The finding has been accepted by the American Society of Mammalogists. The Haida ermine (''M. haidarum'') is thought to be a hybrid species originating from ancient hybridization between ''M. erminea'' and ''M. richardsonii''. Distribution The species is found throughout most of North America as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haida Ermine
The Haida ermine (''Mustela haidarum'') is a mustelid species endemic to a few islands off the Pacific Northwest of North America, namely Haida Gwaii in Canada and the southern Alexander Archipelago in the U.S. state of Alaska. Indigenous names In the Haida language, this species is known as ''daayáats’'' in its brown summer coat and ''tlag'' in its winter coat. Taxonomy The three subspecies of the Haida ermine were originally considered subspecies of the common stoat ('' M. erminea''). However, in 2013, they were recognized as distinct from any other ermine, and a 2021 study further found them to comprise a distinct species. ''M. haidarum'' is thought have originated about 375,000 years ago (during the Pleistocene), and is thought to be the result of ancient hybrid speciation between the Beringian ermine (''M. erminea'') and American ermine (''M. richardsonii''). The islands are thought to have been glacial refugia during the Last Glacial Maximum, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mustela Erminea 02 MWNH 382e
Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets, and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodies and short legs. The family Mustelidae, or mustelids (which also includes badgers, otters, and wolverines), is often referred to as the "weasel family". In the UK, the term "weasel" usually refers to the smallest species, the least weasel (''M. nivalis''), the smallest carnivoran species. Least weasels vary in length from , females being smaller than the males, and usually have red or brown upper coats and white bellies; some populations of some species moult to a wholly white coat in winter. They have long, slender bodies, which enable them to follow their prey into burrows. Their tails may be from long. Weasels feed on small mammals and have from time to time been considered vermin because some species took poultry from farm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mustelid
The Mustelidae (; from Latin , weasel) are a diverse family of carnivoran mammals, including weasels, badgers, otters, polecats, martens, grisons, and wolverines. Otherwise known as mustelids (), they form the largest family in the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora with about 66 to 70 species in nine subfamilies. Variety Mustelids vary greatly in size and behaviour. The smaller variants of the least weasel can be under in length, while the giant otter of Amazonian South America can measure up to and sea otters can exceed in weight. Wolverines can crush bones as thick as the femur of a moose to get at the marrow, and have been seen attempting to drive bears away from their kills. The sea otter uses rocks to break open shellfish to eat. Martens are largely arboreal, while European badgers dig extensive tunnel networks, called setts. Only one mustelid has been domesticated; the ferret. Tayra are also kept as pets (although they require a Dangerous ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subspecies
In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species have subspecies, but for those that do there must be at least two. Subspecies is abbreviated as subsp. or ssp. and the singular and plural forms are the same ("the subspecies is" or "the subspecies are"). In zoology, under the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, the subspecies is the only taxonomic rank below that of species that can receive a name. In botany and mycology, under the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants, other infraspecific name, infraspecific ranks, such as variety (botany), variety, may be named. In bacteriology and virology, under standard International Code of Nomenclature of Prokaryotes, bacterial nomenclature and virus clas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common conception includes the U.S. states of Oregon, Washington (state), Washington, Idaho, and the Canadian province of British Columbia. Some broader conceptions reach north into Alaska and Yukon, south into Northern California, and east into western Montana. Other conceptions may be limited to the coastal areas west of the Cascade Mountains, Cascade and Coast Mountains, Coast mountains. The Northwest Coast is the coastal region of the Pacific Northwest, and the Northwest Plateau (also commonly known as "British Columbia Interior, the Interior" in British Columbia), is the inland region. The term "Pacific Northwest" should not be confused with the Northwest Territory (also known as the Great Northwest, a historical term in the United States) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Guillim
John Guillim (c. 1565 – 7 May 1621) of Minsterworth, Gloucestershire, was an antiquarian and officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. He is best remembered for his monumental work on heraldry, ''A Display of Heraldry'', first published in London in 1610. Early life and education Most sources date the birth of John Guillim to 1565 in the county of Herefordshire, Hereford.Dictionary of National Biography (Vol. 23), ed. Stephen, Leslie, Sir, 1890 However, it is possible he may have been born around 1550. He was the son of John Guillim of Westbury-on-Severn in Gloucestershire. This part of England is very close to the border with Wales and Guillim's ancestors were probably of Welsh extraction. He was educated at Brasenose College, Oxford, Brasenose College in Oxford University. Heraldic career The first record of his involvement with heraldry is the Earl Marshal's warrant, dated 23 February 1604, permitting him to wear the tabard of the Portsmouth Pursuivant Extraord ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sensu Stricto
''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular concept, but it also appears in expressions that indicate the convention or context of the usage. Common qualifiers ''Sensu'' is the ablative case of the noun ''sensus'', here meaning "sense". It is often accompanied by an adjective (in the same case). Three such phrases are: * – "in the strict sense", abbreviation ''s.s.'' or ''s.str.''; * – "in the broad sense", abbreviation ''s.l.''; * – "in a relaxed, generous (or 'ample') sense", a similar meaning to ''sensu lato''. Søren Kierkegaard uses the phrase ''sensu eminenti'' to mean "in the pre-eminent r most important or significantsense". When appropriate, comparative and superlative adjectives may also be used to convey the meaning of "more" or "most". Thus ''sensu strict ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Collective Noun
In linguistics, a collective noun is a word referring to a collection of things taken as a whole. Most collective nouns in everyday speech are not specific to one kind of thing. For example, the collective noun "group" can be applied to people ("a group of people"), or dogs ("a group of dogs"), or objects ("a group of stones"). Some collective nouns are specific to one kind of thing, especially terms of venery, which identify groups of specific animals. For example, "pride" as a term of venery always refers to lions, never to dogs or cows. Other examples come from popular culture such as a group of owls, which is called a "parliament". Different forms of English handle verb agreement with collective count nouns differently. For example, users of British English generally accept that collective nouns take either singular or plural verb forms depending on context and the metonymic shift that it implies, while in some other forms of English the verb agreement is less flexible. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
