M U S T E L A. 
of the above, though by Molina it is faid to have a great 
refemblance, in fhape, manners, and teeth, to a ferret; 
but has black hair and eyes, and a turned-up fnout: the 
tail is as long as the body, and very full of hair. It is a 
native of Chili, and preys on mice. It breeds twice a- 
year, and has three or four young at a time. 
12. Muftela galera, the Guinea weafel: entirely brown. 
The length of this fpecies is about fourteen inches from 
nofe to tail, and of the tail, which tapers to the end, 
about ten : the ears nearly naked, round, and lying flat 
to the head : the tongue rough. The (hape of the body 
like that of a rat: the hair is rough. It is an inhabitant 
of Madagafcar and of Guinea, being very common about 
the negro-fettlements, where it burrows like a rabbit, and 
is very fierce ; when driven to neceflity, it will fly at man 
or bead : it is very deftruftive to poultry. 
13. Muftela Afra, the Madagafcar weafel : body above 
brown, beneath pale yellow ; tail blackifh at the tip. It 
inhabits, as its trivial name imports, the ifland of Mada¬ 
gafcar ; and alfo the interior parts of Africa. 
14. Muftela vifon.- body bright tawny; tail du(ky. It 
inhabits North America; and is placed by Dr. Shaw 
among the otters. “ It appears (he fays) to approach 
fo extremely near to the L. lutreola, or fmaller otter, 
before defcribed, as fcarcely to differ in any other circum- 
ftance but that of wanting the white throat, inftead of 
which it is entirely of a fine brown, with a caft of chef- 
nut : the fur is very fine and glofly. It is probable alfo, 
that this is the real minx of the Americans, and that what 
has been faid by Mr. Pennant relative to the minx, under 
the article of the lefler otter, fhould, in reality, be ap¬ 
plied to this variety.” 
15. Muftela pekan, the pekan : body blackifh-tawny, 
on the bread; a white fpot. This is called Canadenfis in 
Gmelin ; but, as we have already that name among the 
otters, we have adopted the name given it by Buft’on, 
and retained by Pennant. The pekan has very long and 
ftrong whifkers, and his ears are a little pointed : the hair 
on his head, back, and belly, is cinereous at the roots, of 
a bright bay at the ends, and is very foft and glofly; there 
is a tinge of grey on the fides, and between the fore-legs 
a white fpot; the legs and tail are black; its toes, armed 
wfith (harp claws, are covered with thick hair, both above 
and below. Its length is one foot feven inches; the 
length of its tail is about eleven. It is an inhabitant of 
North America. 
16. Muftela quadricolor, the white-cheeked weafel. 
Mr. Pennant defcribed this fpecies from a living animal 
at London in 1774, but could not learn its native coun¬ 
try. It had rounded ears, a broad and blunt nofe, du(ky 
irides, and a flat head : its face, crown, legs, rump, and 
tail, were black ; its chin and cheeks white, its throat of 
a rich yellow, its back and belly were of a pale yellow, 
intimately mixed with alh-colour. Its body was eighteen 
inches long, its tail was of the fame length, covered with 
long hair. 
17. Muftela foina, the marten : body blackifh-tawny; 
throat and bread white. This is an animal of very ele¬ 
gant appearance. Its length from nofe to tail is about 
eighteen inches, and the tail is ten inches. It is a native 
of moft parts of Europe, inhabiting woods and fields, and 
preying on birds and other fmall animals. If taken young 
it may be eafily tamed, and even rendered domeftic. It 
breeds in the hollow of trees, and brings forth from three 
to five young at a time. The fkin is ufed as a fur. It is 
reprefented at fig. 3. 
18. Muftela martes, the pine-marten : body blackifh- 
tawny : throat and bread yellow. This fpecies is found 
in the northern parts of Europe, Alia, and America, and 
very rarely in the fouth. It preys by night; lives by day 
in hollow trees, and fquirrels’ nefts ; it feeds on young 
fquirrels, mice, berries, ripe fruits, and honey: in the 
winter it will watch for and devour pigeons and poultry. 
It brings forth feven or eight young at a time. 
jg. Muftela Guianenfis, the Guinea marten; dark- 
411 
brown; forehead white; the neck has a long narrow ftripe 
along the fide. It inhabits Guinea, is about two feet long, 
with a tail of five inches. The fur is fprinkled witii black 
and white. 
20. Muftela laniger, the woolly marten : body covered 
with woolly hair ; tail long and tapering. It inhabits 
Cayenne ; and is fixteen inches long, with a tail of five 
inches. 
21. Muftela grandis, the grey-headed marten : head, 
and upper part of the fides and neck, greyifh ; the throat, 
alid under fide of the neck, white ; and all the reft of the 
body, limbs, and tail, black. Its length from the tip of 
the nofe to the tail is above two feet; of the tail (which 
is full of hair), eighteen inches. It inhabits Guiana. 
Buffon's Suppl. vi. 250. 
22. Muftela maculata, the fpotted marten : dulky, fpot- 
ted with white. This, which is defcribed in Governor 
Phillips’s Voyage to Botany Bay, is lard to mealure eigh¬ 
teen inches from nofe to tail, and the tail nearly as much : 
the vifage is of a pointed drape ; and the colour is faid to 
be black, marked all over, the tail not excepted, with 
irregular blotches of white : the tail is reprefented as 
thin, and gradually tapering to the end ; the whifkers very 
long. 
23. Muftela zibellina, the fable. There are three va¬ 
rieties of this fpecies : a. Body dark-tawny ; forehead 
white ; throat cinereous ; ( 3 . lnowy white; y. has a collar 
of white or yellow fpots round the neck. This fpecies, 
highly valued for its fine fur, has long whifkers, round 
ears, large feet, white claws, and a long and bufhy tail; 
the colour of the hair is black at the tips, cinereous at 
bottom ; its chin is cinereous, fometimes white, yellow, 
or fpotted; the edges of its ears alfo yellowifh: fome¬ 
times its hair has a tawny caft; for in fpring, after chan¬ 
ging its coat, its colour varies: there are inftances of 
fome being found of a fnowy whitenefs. In fize, it is 
equal to that of the marten, which it alfo very much re- 
fembles in form ; but there is one fpecific diftindtion wor¬ 
thy of notice ; the tail of the marten is much longer than 
the hind-legs, when extended; that of the fable is fhorter. 
It inhabits the northern parts of Afia and America; 
Siberia, Kamfchatka, and the Kurile ifles, between Kamf- 
chatka and Japan. There are none to be found weft of 
the Urallian mountains ; but they increafe in numbers as 
you advance thence to the eaftward: they live in holes in 
the earth, or under the roots of trees : like the marten, 
they form nefts in the trees, and will leap with great agi¬ 
lity from one tree to another: they are very lively, and 
much in motion during the night, but deep much in the 
day : they prey, during fummer, on ermines, weafels, and 
fquirrels ; but, above all, on hares; in winter, on birds ; 
in autumn, on hurtle-berries, cranberries, and the ber¬ 
ries of the fervice-tree ; but in that feafon their (kins are 
the worft ; as that kind of diet, it is faid, caufes them to 
itch, and to rub off their fur againft the trees. They bring 
forth at the end of March or beginning of April, and have 
from three to five at a time, which they fuckle for four 
or five weeks : their excrements are moft exceffively fetid. 
Formerly, in the Ruffian empire, the hunting of thefe 
animals was the talk impofed on thofe exiles who were 
banifhed into Siberia. As that country became more po¬ 
pulous, the fables have, in a good meafure, quitted it, 
and retired into the defect forefts and mountains. They 
ufually refide on the banks of rivers, or on the fmall iflands 
near them. At prefent the fable-hunters form themfeives 
into parties or troops, from five to forty each ; the lalt 
lubdivide into fmaller parties, and each choofes a leader ; 
but there is one commander-in-chief that direfts the 
whole. A fmall covered boat is prepared for each party, 
laden with provifion, a dog and a net for every two men, 
and a veflel to bake their bread in. Each party has alfo 
an interpreter for the part of the country they intend to 
penetrate. Every party then fets out, according to the 
courfe their leader points to them. They afcend the ri¬ 
vers, drawing up their boats, till they arrive in the limit¬ 
ing- 
