WEASEL FAMILY 



(Mustelidae) 



THE weasel family includes the mink, marten, otter, weasel, fisher, 

 wolverine, sea-otter, skunk and badger, all of which are very 

 valuable for their fur. The Eussian sable, sea-otter, Hudson Bay 

 sable, ermine, black marten, fisher, Alaska sable, otter and mink, 

 are derived from the animals mentioned above and are among the most 

 expensive furs. Russian sable skins are frequently sold at $500 or more. 

 Area for area, they cost more than silver fox, as some sable skins 

 are only about eight inches long, exclusive of the five-inch tail. 

 The pelt of the wild sea-otter brings a higher price, on the average, 

 than the wild silver fox. The Hudson Bay, or American marten 

 sometimes has almost as beautiful fur as the Siberian, but the finest 

 pelts sell for less than $100. The Canadian weasel, or ermine, is usu- 

 ally inferior to the Russian, often having a yellowish white or gray 

 colour. The most expensive mink pelts are those from the Laurentian 

 plateau. The price of fisher skins has recently advanced greatly and 

 prime skins sell for as much as $75 each. The price of skunk pelts 

 has also advanced and black skins from northern districts now bring 

 from $4 to $8 for the finest specimens. 



If the domestication of the marten, fisher, otter, mink and 

 skunk, or, in other words, the family of the mustelidae, were accom- 

 plished, there is no doubt that a market for more than ten million dol- 

 lars worth of raw fur annually could be found. The annual production 

 of all American pelts is between twenty-five and fifty million dollars, 

 and the above-mentioned family, with the Siberian marten included, 

 would supply a large proportion of the demand for high-priced furs — 

 probably well over fifty per cent. It is worth noting in this connec- 

 tion tliat the recently established fur-farming experiment stations in 

 the United States will experiment first with this family of animals. 

 They will probably keep the marten and the mink, these two being con- 

 sidered by experts among the most desirable for domestication. 



MINK 

 (I'utnriiis Vison) 



TTiere are two well-known species which resemble each other closely, 

 the European mink or marsh otter of Europe (P. luireoJa) and the 

 American mink (P. vison). The latter is found over a large portion 

 of North America, the finest and darkest being the small minks of 



