• Female European marbled polecats can become mothers as early as three months after birth. This happens much faster than in males, which reach maturity after about a year.

European marbled polecats inhabit and develop on land, away from bodies of water, with their nests hidden in underground burrows. Embryonic development lasts 2 months, and the species reproduces through live birth, with young being born alive on land rather than hatching from eggs or larvae. The female gives birth to a litter of 4 to 8 young only once per year. Only the mother feeds and protects the young in the burrow, demonstrating parental care. A litter has 4 to 8 individuals. The species’ sexual reproduction is homogamous, always involving fertilization without generation changes. Sexual maturity occurs from 1 to 2 years of age. The interval between reproductions is 1 year. Eggs or young develop in a nest built on or near the ground.