Mustela sibirica : Pallas 1773

• Main Author: Law, Chris J.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2018
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Chordata; Mammalia; Carnivora; Mustelidae; Mustela; Mustela sibirica; New Zealand; Kostroma; Morrison; Barrett; Griffith; Bombay; Clayton; Hodgson; Jennings; Thorne; Chiang; Nowak; Matz; Bogan; Youngman; Vorposten; ural mountains; ren; Siberia
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4593310; https://zenodo.org/record/4593310

Mustela sibirica Pallas, 1773 Siberian Weasel Mustela sibirica : Pallas, 1773:701. Type locality: “Sibiriae montanis, sylvis densissimis;” restricted to “Vorposten Tigerazkoi, near Usstkomengorsk, W. Altai” (Oskemen, Kazakhstan, 49.9833° N, 82.6167° E) by Pocock 1941. First use of current name combination. Viverra sibirica : Shaw, 1800:431. Name combination. P [ utorius ] sibericus : Griffith, 1827:122. Name combination. Mustela [ Putorius ] subhemachalana Hodgson, 1837:563. Type locality “ Nepal.” M [ ustela ] canigula Hodgson, 1842:280. Type locality “ Tibet.” [ Mustela ] humeralis Blyth, 1842:99. Type locality “ Sikkim.” Mustela hodgsoni Gray, 1843:118. Type locality “ India, Himalaya.” Mustela horsfieldii Gray, 1843:118. Type locality “ Bhutan, India.” Vison sibirica : Gray, 1865:117. Name combination. Putorius fontanierii Milne Edwards, 1871:205. Type locality “la Chine;” description based on a specimen obtained by M. Fontanier in China. Putorius davidianus Milne Edwards, 1874:343. Type locality “Kiang-si, [Moupin, Tibet].” Putorius moupinensis Milne Edwards, 1874:347. Type locality “Moupin in Szechwan.” Putorius sibiricus miles Barrett-Hamilton, 1904:391. Type locality “Dauria, Eastern Siberia.” Putorius sibiricus noctis Barrett-Hamilton, 1904:391. Type locality “San-yen-tze, China.” Lutreola stegmanni Matschie, 1907:150. Type locality “Tsingtao, Shantung.” Lutreola quelpartis Thomas, 1908:53. Type locality “Island of Quelpart, S. of Korea.” Lutreola major Hilzheimer, 1910:310. Type locality “ Tibet.” Lutreola tafeli Hilzheimer, 1910:310. Type locality “ Tibet.” Kolonokus sibiricus australis Satunin, 1911:266. Type locality “ Tyumen.” M [ ustela ] manchurica Brass, 1911:262. Type locality “Manchuria.” Mustela [ Lutreola ] taivana Thomas, 1913:91. Type locality “ Formosa.” Kolonocus sibirica sibirica Satunin, 1914:124. Name combination. Mustela hamptoni Thomas, 1921:500. Type locality “Imaw Bum.” Kolonocus sibiricus coreanus Domaniewski, 1926:55. Type locality “ Seoul.” Kolonocus sibiricus peninsulae Kishida, 1931:380. Type locality unknown. Mustela [ Kolonocus ] sibirica charbinensis Lowkashkin, 1934:49. Type locality “Manchuria.” CONTEXT AND CONTENT. Order Carnivora, family Mustelidae, subfamily Mustelinae. Twelve subspecies are currently recognized, 11 listed by Wozencraft (2005) and M. sibirica taivana proposed by Suzuki et al. (2013). A revision of subspecies taxonomy, however, is needed as up to 22 subspecies have been proposed (Larivière and Jennings 2009). M. s. canigula Hodgson, 1842:280. See above. M. s. charbinensis Lowkashkin, 1934:49. See above. M. s. coreanus Domaniewski, 1926:55. See above; peninsulae Kishida, 1931:380 is a synonym. M. s. davidiana Milne Edwards, 1874:343. See above; noctis Barrett-Hamilton, 1904:391 is a synonym. M. s. fontanierii Milne Edwards, 1874:205. See above; stegmanni Matschie, 1907:150 is a synonym. M. s. hodgsoni Gray, 1843:118. See above. M. s. manchurica Brass, 1911:262. See above. M. s. moupinensis Milne Edwards, 1874:347. See above; hamptoni Thomas, 1921:500, major Hilzheimer, 1910:310, and tafeli Hilzheimer, 1910:310 are synonyms. M. s. quelpartis Thomas 1908:53. See above. M. s. sibirica Pallas, 1773:701. See above; australis Satunin, 1911: 280 miles Barrett-Hamilton, 1904:391 are synonyms. M. s. subhemachalana Hodgson, 1837:563. See above; humeralis Blyth, 1842:99 and horsfieldii Gray, 1843:118. are synonyms. M. s. taivana Thomas, 1913:91. See above. NOMENCLATURAL NOTES. Mustela sibirica has been previously placed in the genus Viverra (Shaw 1800), genus Putorius (Griffith 1827), genus Vison (Gray 1865), genus Lutreola (Matschie 1907), genus Kolonokus (Satunin 1911), and genus Kolonocus (Satunin 1914). In addition, M. sibirica has also been placed under the subgenus Lutreola (Youngman 1982) and later in the subgenus Kolonokus (Abramov 1999). Other vernacular names include the kolonok and kolinsky (Novikov 1962). DIAGNOSIS Mustela sibirica occurs sympatrically with a variety of mustelids including ferret-badgers, martens, otters, and weasels and stoats (mustelines). Mustelines like M. sibirica can be distinguished from many other mustelids by their small sizes and elongated bodies. In its natural ranges in Asia, M. sibirica can be distinguished from most sympatric mustelines—mountain weasel M. altaica , ermine M. erminea , yellow-bellied weasel M. kathiah , least weasel M. nivalis , and the introduced American mink Neovison vison —by the presence of a black mask on its face that surrounds its eyes, a white muzzle and chin, and a nearly completely monotone yellowish-brown coat in winter (Fig. 1). The sympatric Steppe polecat M. eversmanii also exhibits a dark mask that surrounds its eyes but the mask extends farther across its face toward the cheeks. In addition, M. eversmanii exhibits a white band between the ears and eyes that crosses its head from cheek to cheek (Heptner et al. 2001; Larivière and Jennings 2009). Other characteristics that distinguish M. sibirica from M. eversmanii are body size ( M. eversmanii can attain a body mass twice that of M. sibirica ) and coat color ( M. eversmanii exhibits a coat with a combination of yellowish-white and dark brown color, whereas M. sibirica exhibits a nearly completely monotone yellowish-brown coat in winter and a dark brown coat in summer—Heptner et al. 2001; Larivière and Jennings 2009). On the Japanese islands of Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu, introduced populations of M. sibirica occur sympatrically with the Japanese weasel M. itatsi . Characteristics that distinguish M. sibirica from M. itatsi include body size ( M. sibirica is larger than M. itatsi ), the ratio of tail (T) length to body (HB) length (T/HB ratio is> 50% in M. sibirica , whereas the T/HB ratio is <40% in M. itatsi ), and coat color ( M. sibirica exhibits a lighter brown coat than M. itatsi in winter—Masuda et al. 2012). GENERAL CHARACTERS Mustela sibirica is sexually dimorphic and males are almost twice as heavy as females (Larivière and Jennings 2009). Body weight is 650–820 g for males and 360–430 g for females (Hunter 2011). Body length is 28–39 cm for males and 25–30.5 cm for females, and tail length is 15.5–21 cm for males and 13.3–16.4 cm for females (Hunter 2011). Like other mustelines, M. sibirica has a long, slender body with short limbs. The summer pelage is characterized by short, coarse hair with a dark brown color almost completely covering the entire body and tail; the winter pelage is denser and pale, yellowish-brown in color (Heptner et al. 2001; Larivière and Jennings 2009). The face exhibits a dark mask around in front of the eyes with a white muzzle and chin (Hunter 2011). Females have 4 pairs of mammae (Pocock 1941). The skull is characterized as long and narrow (Heptner et al. 2001; Fig. 2). Mean skull measurements (mm, with ranges in parenthesis) for adult male and female M. s. sibirica in Russia, respectively, were: condylobasal length, 61.7 (58.0–63.5), 52.8 (49.8–56.3); zygomatic breadth, 32.2 (28.7–35.7), 27.8 (26.4– 29.6); interorbital width, 11.7 (11.7–13.2), 11.0 (10.5–12.2); mastoid width, 27.5 (26.8–28.7), 24.3 (23.0–26.1— Heptner et al. 2001). The skulls of male M . sibirica are 16.25% larger than the skulls of females (Law and Mehta 2018). For mustelids in general, the degree of sexual dimorphism in body mass and length can be strongly impacted by the food supply for a cohort during growth, and dimorphism in body size often exceeds that for teeth and jaws (King and Powell 2007). M. sibirica does exhibit sexual dimorphism in craniodental size but little in shape (Sheng 1987; Abramov and Puzachenko 2009; Suzuki et al. 2011). Discriminant analyses using 45 craniodental linear measurements found the following characters contributed to larger skull size in males compared to females: relatively wide viscerocranium; wide postorbital constriction; a slender, long, and high neurocranium; short and wide auditory bullae; short carnassials; and a long and high mandible (Suzuki et al. 2011). The degree of sexual size dimorphism varies across the species’ geographic range (Sheng 1987; Abramov and Puzachenko 2009; Suzuki et al. 2013). Abramov and Puzachenko (2009) found that the subspecies M. s. manchurica of the Far East displays a greater degree of sexual size dimorphism than M. s. sibirica of western and central Siberia. In China, populations occurring in the river plains near the Yangtze and Huai rivers are generally larger and exhibit greater sexual size dimorphism than conspecifics occurring in forest habitats of the Changbai Mountains (Sheng 1987). In addition, male and female individuals of insular populations exhibit smaller skull sizes; the subspecies M. s. taivana in Taiwan exhibits significantly smaller skulls compared to M. s. davidiana of southeast China (Suzuki et al. 2013). Similarly, populations of M. s. coreana in Tsushima Island are slightly smaller than populations of conspecifics found in South Korea (Suzuki et al. 2013). The baculum is weakly curved; the distal tip is flattened and bent upwards, forming a slight hook (Heptner et al. 2001; Baryshnikov et al. 2003). Mean measurements (mm, ranges in parenthesis) for adult males and juvenile males, respectively, were: length, 33.9 (32.0–35.8), 32.2 (30.2 –34.2); width of base, 2.15 (0.6–3.7), 1.6 (0.5–2.7); height of base, 3.65 (2.0–5.3), 2.25 (1.5–3.0— Novikov 1962). DISTRIBUTION Mustela sibirica is widely distributed across Palearctic Asia, with natural populations ranging from the western base of the Ural Mountains of Siberia to the Far East and south to Taiwan and the Himalayas (Abramov et al. 2016; Fig. 3). M. s. sibirica occurs in all of Siberia, ranging from the Kostroma Oblast to 63°N in the Ural Mountains and the upper reaches of the Pur River and down south to the northern border of Kazakhstan and the Altai Mountains (Bakeev 1971; Kassal 2013; Abramov et al. 2016). The range continues eastward through the Zeya Basin and Mongolia and ends at the western parts of northeastern China (Manchuria—Heptner et al. 2001). Both M. s. charbinensis and M. s. manchurica occur in northeastern China (Manchuria—Heptner et al. 2001); however, the exact ranges are unknown and the validity of these separate subspecies remains untested. M. s. coreana is endemic to the Korean Peninsula and to Tsushima, Japan (Sasaki and Ono 1994). M. s. fontanierii occurs in the northern parts of Anhui, eastern parts of Gansu, southern parts of Hebei, Henan, northern parts of Hubei, northern parts of Jiangsu, southern parts of Nei Mongol, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai, and Shanxi (China— Allen 1929; Smith et al. 2010). M. s. quelpartis is endemic to Jeju Island (formerly Quelpart Island), Japan (Abramov 2005). Two subspecies occur at the southeast edge of the species’ geographic range: M. s. davidiana occurs in southeast China (Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, and Zhejiang) and M. s. taivana is endemic to Taiwan (Smith et al. 2010; Suzuki et al. 2013). M. s. moupinensis occurs in the Chinese provinces of Gansu, Guizhou, western parts of Hubei, southeastern parts of Qinghai, southern parts of Shaanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan (Ellerman and Morrison-Scott 1951; Smith et al. 2010). Three subspecies occur around the Himalayas: M. s. canigula occurs in Tibet (Hodgson 1842; Heptner et al. 2001); M. s. subhemachalana occurs in Nepal to Bhutan (Ellerman and Morrison-Scott 1951); and M. s. hodgsoni occurs in Kashmir and the Western Himalayas from Kam to Garhwal (Gray 1843; Heptner et al. 2001). Mustela sibirica was released from fur farms in Hyogo and has since spread to the Japanese islands of Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu (Miyashita 1963; Sasaki et al. 2014). M. s. sibirica was also reintroduced in the Semenov District of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia in 1937 and in the Dzhetyoguz District of Issyk Kul Province, Kyrgyzstan in 1941 (Heptner et al. 2001; Long 2003). No fossils are known for M . sibirica . FORM AND FUNCTION The dental formula for Mustela sibirica is i 3/3, c 1/1, p 3/3, m 1/2, total 34 (Larivière and Jennings 2009). Comparison of the craniodental morphology using 32 linear measurements found subtle shape differences between 5 populations of M. sibirica (southeast China, Korea, Tsushima, Honshu, and Taiwan— Suzuki et al. 2013). Skulls from insular populations tend to be smaller than continental specimens (Suzuki et al. 2013). In northern Russia, the spring molt occurs toward the end of February or the beginning of March; the winter guard hairs shed and the pelage is quickly replaced with summer guard hairs (Novikov 1962). The autumn molt occurs at the end of August or the beginning of September (Novikov 1962). The winter guard hairs grow out simultaneously with the loss of summer guard hairs, and the winter pelage is completely grown out by early November (Novikov 1962). In Heilongjiang, China, autumn molt begins around October–November (Hua et al. 2010). Increased in hair densities (hairs/mm 2) from summer to winter coats in males and females, respectively, were: 91.82 to 219.33 and 73.83 to 182.35 on the head; 121.93 to 263.98 and 105.99 to 205.50 on the back; 73.89 to 175.12 and 65.91 to 151.26 on the belly; and 80.38 to 183.59 and 73.21 to 180.63 on the tail (Hua et al. 2010). Increase in hair lengths (mm) from summer to winter coats in males and females, respectively, were: 11.50 to 17.84 and 11.48 to 14.27 on the head; 20.82 to 27.01 and 18.90 to 25.18 on the back; 15.97 to 19.82 and 14.06 to 18.33 on the belly; and 30.36 to 42.61 and 23.59 to 41.63 on the tail (Hua et al. 2010). In the Longkou Forest Farm of Tonghe in the Xiaoxingan Mountain, China, mean measurements (ranges in parenthesis) of the winter guard hairs from the mid-backs of 15 adult males and 15 adult females, respectively, were: hair length, 33.50 mm (32.00–36.00 mm), 28.85 mm (25.50–31.50 mm); hair follicle length, 0.37 mm (0.23–0.40 mm), 0.27 mm (0.20–0.34 mm); hair diameter, 126.6 µm (108.4–152 µm), 79.41 µm (98.5– 147.8 µm); and hair root diameter, 26.8 µm (19.7–39.4 µm), 22.5 µm (19.7–29.6 µm—Zhang et al. 2008). Mean measurements (ranges in parenthesis) of winter upper-hairs from the hind-toes of 15 adult males and 15 adult females, respectively, were: hair length, 11.32 mm (9.31–14.28 mm), 10.45 mm (9.10–11.59 mm); hair follicle length, 0.91 mm (0.46–1.33 mm), 0.79 mm (0.11–1.21 mm); hair diameter, 107.7 µm (91.6– 119.2 µm), 101.0 µm (88.7–108.4 µm); and hair root diameter, 86.0 µm (68.0– 109.3 µm), 71.9 µm (59.1–88.7 µm—Zhang et al. 2008). The anal gland contains 9 sulfur-based volatiles: 2,2-dimethylthietane, (E)-2,4-dimethylthietane, (E)-2,3-dimethylthietane, 2-ethylthietane, (E)-2-ethyl-3-methylthietanes, (Z)-2-ethyl- 3-methylthietanes, 2-propylthietane, 3,3-dimethyl-1,2-dithiacyclopentane, and (Z)-3,4-dimethyl-1,2-dithiacyclopentane; (E)-2,2-dimethylthietane is the most abundant (Zhang et al. 2002). Volatile abundance differs between the sexes: (E)-2,4- dimethylthietane and (E)-2,3-dimethylthietane are significantly more abundant in females than in males, whereas 3,3-dimethyl- 1,2-dithiacyclopentane is significantly more abundant in males than in females (Zhang et al. 2002, 2003). 2-Ethylthietane only occurs in females and is undetected in males (Zhang et al. 2002, 2003). Laboratory experiments reveal that rice-field rats Rattus rattoides exhibit self-anointing behavior when presented filter paper scented with anal-gland secretions of M. sibirica (Xu et al. 1995). ONTOGENY AND REPRODUCTION Little is known about the reproduction of Mustela sibirica . In Siberia, the breeding season occurs at the beginning of February to the end of March (Heptner et al. 2001). Captive M. sibirica in Novosibirsk, Russia, however, bred from April to August, with peak breeding activity occurring in late April (Ternovsky 1977, not seen, cited inAmstislavsky and Ternovskaya 2000:572). This variation in timing may be due to differences in environmental conditions, including those imposed by captivity. Copulation lasts from 27 min to up to 2 h and 40 min (Ternovsky and Ternovskaya 1994). M. sibirica has the shortest gestation period (32–35 days; mean 33.5 days) of all studied mustelids (Ternovsky 1977, not seen, cited in Amstislavsky and Ternovskaya 2000:572). Liter size ranges 2–12 kits (mean 6.2 kits) (Ternovsky 1977, not seen, cited in Amstislavsky and Ternovskaya 2000:572). M. sibirica does not exhibit delayed implantation (Mead 1989). Young are born blind and almost naked with only sparse white fur (Heptner et al. 2001). Young open their eyes for the 1st time by 28–30 days, and weaning ends at the end of the 2nd month (Heptner et al. 2001). Young born in April become independent toward the end of summer, usually by August (Novikov 1962). ECOLOGY Population characteristics. —The range of Mustela sibirica is extensive across Palearctic Asia, with natural populations ranging from west of the Ural Mountains of Siberia to the Far East and south to Taiwan and the Himalayas (Abramov et al. 2016). Food abundance is hypothesized to determine the population and distribution of M. sibirica , and Siberia and northeast China are believed to contain the highest densities of M. sibirica because of large densities of several rodent species (Heptner et al. 2001). Mustela sibirica is a common game species in western Siberia, and records of population censuses are largely based on fur trapping records (Bakeev 1971). Long-term records reveal great annual and multi-annual fluctuations in population density. Increases in population densities were preceded by large increases in rodent abundance (Bakeev 1971). The mean total number of M. sibirica : Published as part of Law, Chris J., 2018, Mustela sibirica (Carnivora: Mustelidae), pp. 109-118 in Mammalian Species 50 (966) on pages 109-116, DOI: 10.1093/mspecies/sey013, http://zenodo.org/record/4573577 : {"references": ["PALLAS, P. S. 1773. Reise durch Verschiedene Provinzen des Russischen Reichs. Vol. 3. Kayserlichen Academie der Wissenschaften, St. Petersbourg, Russia.", "POCOCK, R. I. 1941. The fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia. Vol. II. Carnivora (suborders Aeluroidae (part) and Arctoidae). Taylor and Francis, Ltd, London, United Kingdom.", "SHAW, G. 1800. General zoology or systematic natural history, vol. I. Part 1. Mammalia. Thomas Davison, London, United Kingdom.", "GRIFFITH, E. 1827. 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