Egyptian weasel

The Egyptian weasel is a population of the least weasel endemic to northern Egypt, formerly considered a distinct species under the name Mustela subpalmata. It was suggested to be separate in 1992 on skull measurements, but mitochondrial DNA indicates an isolated population of Mustela nivalis, namely the subspecies numidica, and the American Society of Mammalogists now recognizes it as conspecific with the least weasel. It has short legs, a small head and small ears, a long thin tail, a broad snout, a brown upper body and a cream-coloured lower body. It occurs from Alexandria east to Port Said and south through the Nile delta to Beni Suef, living among people in cities and villages as an obligate synanthrope. It is omnivorous, taking about half of its diet as vegetables and fruit, together with waste human food, rodents, poultry chicks, rabbits, fish and insects. It is listed as Least Concern and is not considered threatened at present.