Himalayan Weasel | Ladakh

[Sucheth Lingachar]

Photographed in Hemis National Park at Ladakh( Rumbak Valley). Its very difficult to capture this bcoz it was so fast moving and i can not focus properly. I could manage only this.

Nikon D7100, Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4D IF-ED + AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E II/14E
F/7.1, 1/2000s, ISO 400, Cropped

[Roopak Gangadharan]

Super sighting. you seem to have got it in good light. is that a natural stone formation??
TFS
Roopak

[Sucheth Lingachar]

Thank you Roopak... for the comments.... No this is not natural formation... this stone formation was done by villagers.

[Saktipada Panigrahi]

Nice rare sighting. Now we are lucky to have the full image. I am little inclined to its ID: Mustula sibirica canigula; may also be race: hodasoni. NOT SURE.
What are the views of other members?
Thanks for sharing.SaktiWild

[Debasis Bose]

Lovely capture. Sighting of himalayan weasel is common in higher altitude, especially in Leh / Ladakh region and himalyan weasel falls under least concern for extinction category as per IUCN because of wide distribution and healthy population. Thanks for sharing

Dear Saktida, There are three races known to be found in Indian teritory, namely Mustela Sibirica Canigula, Mustela Sabirica hodgsoni and Mustela Sabirica sub-himachalana. Understand in recent past new species of weasel (belly white or yellow) has been identified in Arunachal Pradesh. Regards Debasis Bose

[Saktipada Panigrahi]

Many thanks Bhai Debasis. What exactly I am trying to learn from all of you is- whether this one is sub-species: '--canigula' or '--hodgsoni'.SaktiWild

[Debasis Bose]

I am not an authority in it but from my own reading, research and logic it appears the photographed race is canigula (zoologist friends/members please confirm), as hodgsoni weasel are commonly found in Sikkim and himachalana are commonly found in himanchal pradesh. Speciality of Mustela canigula weasel, (some people may refer by synonym as altacia or mountain weasel) is that they molt during spring and autumn so the coat changes color during the different seasons. It is evident from the colour of the coat and less hairy/bushy tail. As the winter peaks, the weasel’s coat transforms into dark yellowish to ruddy brown on the back, while its throat and stomach is a pale yellow-creamy white color. The area between its muzzle and ears usually turns to a darker grey-brown. In summer, its fur turns grey to grey-brown with highlights of light yellow showing. The lips are white and the stiff hairs, which are located around the nostrils or other parts of its face (vibrissae), are greyish-brown to white.

[Sucheth Lingachar]

Thank you so much Saktipada Panigrahi and Debasis Bose for the information regarding Himalayan Weasel...so much of learning.

i was going through google.. about mountain weasel.. which ever i took the picture looks like these (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_weasel) there they mentioned it as Mustela altaica am little bit confused.... :( and they mentioned as its Near Threatened .. please clarify.

[Debasis Bose]

Dear Sucheth, wikipedia is open for general public to feed in the information. It is also possible that the latest status may have been upgraded to near threatened, as the last record is of 2008. If you visit the IUCN red list assesment website, there it is highlighted as least concerned by IUCN, however, as mentioned earlier the year of last assessment is 2008. You may visit <www.iucnredlist.org> for the confirmation. For your quick reference, herewith I am pasting the Mustela Sibirica IUCN red list assessment as published.

IUCN Red List Assessment
Red List Category: LC Least Concern
Red List Criteria: Version 3.1
Year Assessed: 2008
Assessor/s : Duckworth, J.W. & Abramov, A.
Reviewer/s: Belant, J. (Small Carnivore Red List Authority) & Schipper, J. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)
Justification: The species Mustela Sibirica is listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category.
History: •1996 Lower Risk/least concern (Baillie and Groombridge 1996)

[Sabyasachi Patra]

It looks like Mustela sibirica canigula. Nice sighting with the full body captured in the image.