What animal is the cousin of a weasel?

A Few Weasel Relatives If you want an idea of the different animals you would see at the weasel family reunion, some that might show up include wolverines, minks, ferrets, badgers, and otters. That’s not just the small, playful river otters, but their larger cousins the sea otters and the even larger giant otters, too.

What is the heaviest of the weasel family?

The largest is the sea otter (Enhydra lutris) at about 1 metre (3.3 feet) long and a weight of 25–45 kg (55–99 pounds). The largest terrestrial mustelid is the wolverine (Gulo gulo), found in the northern United States and throughout Canada and northern Europe.

Are otters part of the weasel family?

Otters are part of the Mustelidae family, which is a family of carnivorous mammals that includes skunks, weasels, wolverines, and badgers. The sea otter is the largest member of the weasel family, yet the smallest marine mammal in North America.

Are weasels closer to dogs or cats?

Where did the reporter get this information? Any basic encyclopedia could have told him that ferrets are weasels, in the family Mustelidae, order Carnivora. They are more closely related to dogs and cats (all being members of the Carnivora) than they are to any rodent (order Rodentia).

What’s a Russian sable?

The sable (Martes zibellina) is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia.

Are badgers and wolverines related?

Both the wolverine and the badger belong to the Mustelidae family. They are nocturnal hunters and are considered the two fiercest and toughest members of their kind. The wolverine is more massive, more resistant to frost, and more outfitted to hunt mammals many times its size.

Is a skunk a weasel?

The skunk is a carnivorous, cat-sized mammal. Skunks were previously considered as part of the weasel family (Mustelidae) but DNA research has placed them in their own family, Mephitidae. The skunk is a carnivorous, cat-sized mammal.

Are weasels related to hyenas?

Weasels and dogs are both part of the Caniformia suborder of Carnivora. Hyenas are part of the Feliformia suborder, making them more closely related to cats, civets, and mongooses than to dogs or weasels.

Is a raccoon in the weasel family?

For much of the 20th century, virtually all of the smaller dog-branch carnivorans that are not members of Procyonidae (the raccoon family) were lumped together in the large group Mustelidae, popularly termed the weasel family.

Can you get a sable in the US?

They are illegal to keep as pets in some states and localities. California, Hawaii, and New York City ban keeping ferrets as pets. Other areas around the country may have similar restrictions. If you are considering adopting a ferret, ask your vet about any limitations or bans in your area.

How strong is a wolverines bite?

In the case of bite strength, the wolverine has demonstrated a bite force of 50 PSI and they have specialized molars in the top of their mouth that are turned 90 degrees to help break through frozen flesh and bone.