The ferret is a small predatory mammal from the mustelid family. It is the domestic form of the forest polecat and has lived next to humans for hundreds of years as a pet and rodent hunter.
The ferret differs from the wild polecat by its more friendly character and various fur colors. It is important for nature because its wild ancestors help control the population of rodents in forests and fields.
hay
homogamy, reproduction always with fertilization, no alternation of generations
Worker
Tail size
birth time
Submerges underwater to reach prey or food at depth.
Describes the act of excavating soil or substrate to locate or access food.
breeding
pursuit
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
summer mild, +15…+20 °C
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
very cold, short summer, almost no trees, lots of moss
days
Warm summer
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
adult carnivoran
Maturity
Coconut
insects
About health
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
rodents in general — rats, squirrels, ground squirrels
Repro interval
results
Eyes count
summer warm, winter not very cold
Colors
Cool summer
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
diving
mo
Trophic type
Filters
running
Captures or processes food by biting or nipping with the mouth.
Palearctic realm
den
Upcoming birthdays
eggs, roe or offspring develop in a nest built on the ground or close to it
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
in a burrow
Height
nest on the ground
rains almost always, very humid
young are born live on land, not hatched from eggs or roe
Age (from birth to death)
crevice
Domestic world
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Wanderers
Food items are collected from exposed outer surfaces of substrates.
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
More:
Tundra
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
Lifespan average
nest located directly on the ground surface on land, only the mother provides parental care for the offspring
in a terrestrial nest
live birth
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
birds
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
nest hidden in an underground burrow
Actively hunting and capturing live prey.
from 0.5 to 0.8 kilograms, 0.5 – 1 meter
digging
Pets
biting
Feeding occurs primarily on land or in vegetation.
{name} jubilee
live in homes and on farms
Claws count
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
turns
Rascals
terrestrial forest
Tail color
Flooded grasslands
Litter size
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
°C
Not specified
Share
Where are they found?
hares and rabbits
Locomotion through water employed while searching for or capturing prey.
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Elders
Bro
normal sexual
Taxons
carnivore
if born as {name}
Actively chases and captures mobile prey in open space.
age
birth date
swimming
Palearctic realm
rest
Fur color
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
nocturnal
The basics
coastal
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
surface
primary food sources
teeth
Potential Habitat
embryo
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Feeding occurs in water bodies such as rivers, lakes, or oceans.
Mass
live hares and rabbits
cold winter, lots of coniferous trees: spruce, pine
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
terrestrial
Body size
aquatic
land
{name} birthday
Link copied
No results found
underground
live birds
On the map
Pleasant summer
all life stages
Female ♀
hunting small prey
nest located directly on the ground surface on land
rodents
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
Shelter used specifically for reproduction or nesting.
Maturity
Skin color
bird eggs
rabbits
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
sq mm
yr
comfortable summer, +20…+25 °C
protection from sun
How similar?
live in homes and on farms
Male ♂
until the celebration
young
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
from birth to adulthood
Young offspring still dependent on parental care.
caring mother
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Immature individual that has not yet reached reproductive maturity.
Hard dental structures used to bite, tear, or scrape food.
forests on land — tropical, temperate, boreal
water often floods the land, lots of grass
rodents
Temperate mixed forest
Duration
live insects
This is me
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Foraging activity occurs primarily during nighttime hours.
Always very wet
tissue
Gamers
Teeth count
How are they built?
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
Lives in open or semi-open areas with scattered trees and shrubs.
Taiga
Asexual
swap
active predation
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Warm summer and lots of rain
inhabit and develop on land, outside water bodies
paper
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
woodlands
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
Domestic world
Hermaphrodite ⚥
embryo
eggs
summer warm, many oaks, birches, maples
Length
kg
lots of rain, warm and pleasant summer
Observations
◉{N} more on tap
young
pupa
imago
adolescent
adolescent