The biology of the Weasel (Mustela nivalis L.) in the light of the Hungarian literature

To gain a better understanding of the biology of the Weasel, we collected and evaluated the literature on this species based on publications related to hunting, wildlife management and zoology in Hungary. The evaluation was based on 267 articles published in ten journals in the period between the 19th and 21st centuries, covering morphology, ethology, habitat, veterinary aspects, reproduction and nutritional biology. The importance of each topic, such as the importance of issues related to the biology and perception of the species, was assessed by the number of publications in that topic. The highest proportion of mentions related to nutritional biology was published in the national press (44.6%). We also had the opportunity to compile a taxon list summarising the potential food components of the Weasel based on the mentions published in the papers. Reports on the habitat of the species were the next most important topic (23.2%), but also a significant proportion of publications on the morphology of the species (12.0%), similar to the studies on reproduction (10.5%). Publications on animal health and ethology represented a smaller proportion (4.9%) of the publications on the biology of the Weasel. It is clear from the summarised works that the focus of the authors' work was on outlining the role of wildlife management, since a realistic assessment of the role of this species requires a basic understanding of the range of species preyed upon and the habitat types they prefer. Based on these studies, a comprehensive picture of the biology of the Weasel has been obtained, which is a gap in the Hungarian zoological literature on this understudied small carnivore in Europe