Mustela itatsi

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	CARNIVORA	MUSTELIDAE

Scientific Name:

Mustela itatsi

Species Authority:

Temminck, 1844

Common Name/s:

English

–

Japanese Weasel

Taxonomic Notes:

Abramov (2000), Kuroseet al. (2000), and Graphodatsky et al. (1976) supported separation of itatsi from sibirica. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Siberian Weasel Mustela sibirica.

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2008

Assessor/s

Abramov, A. & Wozencraft, C.

Evaluator/s:

Duckworth, J.W. (Small Carnivore Red List Authority) & Schipper, J. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Justification:
This species is listed as Least Concern, although there is interspecific competition with introduced populations of Mustela sibirica this species is widespread geographically in Japan and is not thought to be declining at a rate to qualify for a threat category.

History:

2003

–

Not Evaluated (IUCN 2003)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is endemic to Japan on Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, Sado, Oki Islands, Izu-Oshima, Awaji, Shoudo, Iki, Goto Islands, Yaku and Tane, and introduced to Hokkaido in the 1880s (Inukai 1934). It was introduced for control of rats on about 50 islands, including Sakhlain, Rishiri, Rebun, Izu Islands (Miyake, Hachijo, Aogashima), Aoshima (Nagasaki Prefecture), Kuchino, Nakano, Suwanose, Hira, Akuseki, Kikai, Okinoerabu, Yoron (Kagoshima Prefecture), Zamami, Aka, Minami-Daito, Kita-Daito, Irabu, Iriomote, Hateruma (Okinawa Prefecture) (Shiraishi 1982). It is naturalized on some islands (Abe, 2005). It is found in most elevation zones, but mainly at lower elevations (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006).
Countries:	Native: Japan
Range Map:	(click map to view full version)

Population [top]

Population:	This species is common.
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species occurs in grasslands, forests, villages, and suburbs, but not in big cities (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). Rodents, insects, amphibians and reptiles make up the main part of its diet (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). It shows extreme sexual dimorphism (male:450 g, female:150 g ) (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). It is found in most habitats across Japan.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	It does not tolerate urbanization (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). In western Japan, the Japanese Weasel is being driven to marginal montane habitats by competition with the introduced Siberian Weasel (Mustela sibirica) (Abe, 2005).

Major Threat(s):

It does not tolerate urbanization (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). In western Japan, the Japanese Weasel is being driven to marginal montane habitats by competition with the introduced Siberian Weasel (Mustela sibirica) (Abe, 2005).

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Females of this species are protected from hunting by law (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). It is ranked as a near threatened species in the Red List of 9 prefectures in the western Japan (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006).

Conservation Actions:

Females of this species are protected from hunting by law (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006). It is ranked as a near threatened species in the Red List of 9 prefectures in the western Japan (Sasaki pers. comm. 2006).

Citation:	Abramov, A. & Wozencraft, C. 2008. Mustela itatsi. In: IUCN 2009. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2009.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 February 2010.
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