Representatives of the weasel family differ in their lifestyle and habitat. Weasels are valued for their luxurious fur, which is used to make fur coats and hats, especially the expensive fur of mink, marten, sable and otter.
Weasels are small animals, the largest species have a body length of up to 150 cm. The body is often flexible, strongly elongated. Their fur is diverse and depends on the habitat of the animal. Inhabitants of Siberian forests - sable, sea otter, marten - are the owners of thick fur, which is worth its weight in gold. The inhabitants of warm regions have coarse and tough fur, but with a soft undercoat. In many species, the splendor and color of the fur changes seasonally.
And otters, who love water so much, are distinguished by their fur with thick down. Hair coloration is monochromatic - brown, white, black or yellow-red. There are animals with an interesting color, decorated with all kinds of spots and stripes. Weasels are terrestrial predators, very nosy, they climb trees perfectly, some species dig holes and look for food underground. Weasels can be found all over the world, even in distant Australia.
Because of their valuable fur, they are massively exterminated, some species have completely disappeared. Only in zoos and reserves is the black-footed ferret found, and the sea mink was among the exterminated. Many species are listed in the Red Book; work is actively underway to protect and restore the population of fur-bearing animals, such as sable and sea otters. Only aborigines are allowed to hunt them.
