Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Photographs on this web-site were taken by Paul Smith, Hemme Batjes, Regis Nossent,
Alberto Esquivel, Arne Lesterhuis, José Luis Cartes, Rebecca Zarza and Hugo del Castillo and are used with their permission.
MUSTELIDAE - WEASELS AND ALLIES
Six species of small to medium-sized carnivores. The body is typically elongate with short legs and a long tail. The head is small and flattened with a short snout and small, rounded ears. Incisors are unspecialized but the canines are large. The premolars are small, the second lower molar being reduced or absent. All species show a reduction in molar number, though the otters do not show a reduction in premolar number.
Skull: Robust cranium with large brain case.
Melaphitinae: Skunks
The only Paraguayan skunk, instantly recognizable by its black and white-banded pelage and long bushy tail. The snout is bare, flattened and pig-like, hence the common name. Skunks have a robust body with small, rounded ears and short, powerful legs. The forefeet have fairly long toes, those of the hindfeet being shorter. Both feet have long, strong claws. The pelage is two-layered with a dense, woolly lower layer and a longer, outer layer of stiff hairs.
Mustelinae: Weasels
Three species of carnivorous mustelid in two genera.
Lutrinae: Otters
Two species of aquatic or semiaquatic mustelids in two genera, distinguishable by size alone. The pelage has a dense, waterproof interior layer. The feet possess interdigital membranes.
REFERENCES
Diaz MM & Barquez RM 2002 - Los Mamíferos de Jujuy, Argentina - LOLA
Emmons LH & Feer F 1999 - Mamíferos de los Bosques Húmedos de América Tropical - FAN Bolivia
Redford K 1992 - Mammals of the Neotropics Vol 2: The Southern Cone Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay - University of Chicago Press.
