🦊 Weasel of the Sella River: Stealthy, Efficient, and Truly Asturian
The weasel (Mustela nivalis) is one of Europe’s smallest carnivorous mammals and is found in the forests, meadows, and riverbanks of the Sella River. Despite its small size and elusive behavior, it plays an essential ecological role as a natural controller of rodents and small vertebrates.
🔍 Morphology and Behavior
Its body is long and slender, perfect for moving through cracks, walls, or dense vegetation:
• Flattened head and short snout
• Long, flexible neck
• Short, rounded ears
• Long, uniformly colored tail
• Short legs with five toes and sharp claws
• Excellent hearing and a keen sense of smell
This anatomical design makes the weasel an agile, silent predator, perfectly adapted to the Sella River environment.
🍽️ Varied Diet and Ecological Control
It feeds mainly on:
- 🐭 Rodents: rats, mice, voles, dormice
- 🦔 Insectivores: shrews
- 🐇 Also hunts young rabbits and small birds: partridges, pigeons, and songbirds
- 🦗 Insects and occasionally: crickets, grasshoppers, amphibians, or reptiles
- 🐓 In rural areas, it may attack poultry
Thanks to this diet, it is a natural ally in controlling pests in the agricultural and rural areas of the Sella.
🧬 Life Cycle and Behavior
- 🐾 Leads a solitary life, marking its territory with scent glands.
- ❤️ Only during the breeding season does it form small family groups, with the mother caring for the young.
- 🕓 More active at dawn and dusk, though it can also be seen during the day in quiet areas.
🌿 Habitat in the Sella River Basin
The weasel adapts to a wide variety of environments:
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Embankments and stone walls
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Edges of forests and pastures
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Wet meadows near the Sella River
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Rural areas with shrubs or hedges
It is common in transitional zones between agricultural and forested areas, making the Sella River surroundings an ideal habitat.
tag: wildlife river sella – weasel
