The genome sequence of the least weasel, Mustela nivalis Linnaeus, 1766 (Carnivora: Mustelidae)

<ns3:p> We present a genome assembly from a male <ns3:italic>Mustela nivalis</ns3:italic> (least weasel; Chordata; Mammalia; Carnivora; Mustelidae). The assembly contains two haplotypes with total lengths of 3 437.86 megabases and 2 835.05 megabases. Haplotype 1 is scaffolded into 22 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the X and Y sex chromosomes. Haplotype 2 was assembled to scaffold level. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled, with a length of 16.49 kilobases. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 18 938 protein-coding genes. This assembly was generated as part of the Darwin Tree of Life project, which produces reference genomes for eukaryotic species found in Britain and Ireland. </ns3:p>