European polecats Mustela putorius were found to engage homosexually with non-sibling animals. Exclusive homosexuality with mounting and anal penetration in this solitary species serves no apparent adaptive function.Thierry Lodé La guerre des sexes chez les animaux Eds O Jacob, Paris, 2006.
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The beech marten has been known to kill European polecats on rare occasions. Red foxes, lynxes and mountain lions may prey on adults, and juveniles are vulnerable from attack by birds of prey and wildcats. There is, however one case, from Germany, of a beech marten killing a domestic cat.
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Oikos, 205-215. Traces of an even bigger mustelid have been found, the European pine marten (Martes martes), in the foods of tawny owls, though it is a considerable possibility that this was scavenged rather than killed by the owl, much like the verified case of tawny owls scavenging remains of European polecats (Mustela putorius).
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Polecat-mink hybrids are termed khor'-tumak by furriers and khonorik by fanciers. Such hybridisation is very rare in the wild, and typically only occurs where European minks are declining. A polecat-mink hybrid has a poorly defined facial mask, yellow fur on the ears, grey-yellow underfur and long, dark brown guard hairs. Fairly large, the males attain the peak sizes known for European polecats (weighing and measuring in length), and females are much larger than female European minks (weighing and measuring in length).
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Polecat–mink hybrids have a poorly defined facial mask, have yellow fur on the ears, grey- yellow underfur and long, dark-brown guard hairs. They are fairly large, with males attaining the peak sizes known for European polecats (weighing 1.12-1.75 kg and measuring 41–47 cm in length) and females being much larger than female European minks (weighing around 0.75 kg and measuring 37 cm in length). The majority of polecat–mink hybrids have skulls bearing greater similarities to those of polecats than to minks.
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Miller's Catalogue of the Mammals of Western Europe (Europe exclusive of Russia) in the collection of the British Museum right The European mink is a typical representative of the genus Mustela, having a greatly elongated body with short limbs. However, compared to its close relative, the Siberian weasel, the mink is more compact and less thinly built, thus approaching ferrets and European polecats in build. The European mink has a large, broad head with short ears. The limbs are short, with relatively well-developed membranes between the digits, particularly on the hind feet.
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European polecat Polecat is a common name for mammals in the order Carnivora and subfamilies Galictinae and Mustelinae. Polecats do not form a single taxonomic rank (i.e., clade); the name is applied to several species with broad similarities (including having a dark mask-like marking across the face) to European polecats, the only polecat species native to the British Isles. In the United States, the term polecat is sometimes applied to the black-footed ferret, a native member of the Mustelinae, and (loosely) to skunks, which are only distantly related.
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Construction on the remaining 12.6 km is currently blocked from proceeding after a successful lawsuit by the Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU). According to the NABU, the highway threatens the habitats of great crested newts, European polecats, and some 25 different species of dragonflies. DEGES plans to meet all of NABU's concerns and restart construction by 2011, but the NABU and most local residents are still opposed to the project, and the NABU intends to continue using lawsuits to stop construction. The 18-year delay in construction has added an estimated €70 million to the project's initial projected cost of €80 million.
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