THE SABLE 



(Mustela zibellina) 



OWING to the extravagant value set on its fur, the Sable is the most 

 celebrated of the Weasel tribe with the exception of the Ermine 

 but it is very unfamiliar as a living animal. It is not a large beast, 

 measuring about a couple of feet from nose to tail-tip, and with the 

 slim-bodied, short-legged build of Weasels and Martens generally. 



Its colour is very variable, and in general the blackest skins are 

 considered the best; a peculiarly rich effect is given by the contrast 

 of the glossy longer hairs with the soft reddish under-fur. Except 

 for the length and quality of the coat, there is little difference between 

 the Sable and the Pine Marten (Mustela martes), which ranges over 

 much of Northern Europe and Asia, and even lingers in our islands 

 in the remote mountainous districts of all three kingdoms. Scarcely 

 separable also is the American Sable or Marten (M. americana), one 

 of the most valuable fur-animals of North America. 



The true Sable's especial home is Eastern Siberia ; formerly, at 

 all events, it extended west to the Urals, but relentless persecution 

 has reduced and is still reducing its numbers. The hunt for Sable 

 pelts is full of hardships for the hunters themselves, for the creatures 

 have to be pursued in winter, when the fur is best and thickest, and 

 the cold is of course terrible in the Siberian forests at that season. 



The Sable is a great climber, like other Martens, and when pur- 

 sued by the hunter's Dogs, runs up a tree, whence it is, if possible, 

 shaken or knocked into a net spread round the trunk, the great idea 

 being to capture it with as little injury to the skin as may be. The 

 creature's activity in climbing stands it in good stead in procuring its 

 food, which consists of Squirrels, birds, and such-like defenceless 

 creatures ; it will, indeed, prey upon anything it can overcome, and is 

 of a very bloodthirsty disposition. Occasionally, in Kamtschatka at 



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