WEASEL

21st April 2024

Photo Credit: MikeLane45 (Getty Images), CANVA

QUOTATION

I thank it. More, I prithee, more.

I can suck melancholy out of a song

As a weasel sucks eggs.

More, I prithee, more.

JAQUES: As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 5

WEASEL (Mustela nivalis)

Weasels come in for bad press in Shakespeare, they are ‘quarrelous’, full of ‘spleen’ and the ‘weasel Scot comes sneaking’. They do not fare better in ancient literature. They are on the list of unclean foods in the Bible book of Leviticius (11:29). In Physiologus, the ancient book of spiritual comparisons of the nature of animals the Weasel is said to give birth through its ears, right ear for male, left ear for female, and ‘wicked things are engendered through the ears’. The tradition that Weasels give birth through their mouth was included in Ovid’s Metamorphoses in the story of Galanthis who assisted her mistress to give birth by tricking the goddess Lucina and was turned into a Weasel.

Topsell (1607) shares much of the contemporary and ancient knowledge about Weasels including that they contain a poison that can kill the Cockatrice (mythical creature), that Weasel brain mixed with rennet with keep cheese safe from mice and corruption, and the many uses of burnt and powdered Weasel in medicine including Quatrain Fever and Gout.

Weasels are related to Stoats and Otters but are the smallest of the group. They have a ginger/brown back and white front and grow up to just over 20cm in length. They are carniverous and eat voles, mice and birds. They are widespread and relatively common in many habitats of the UK but are absent from Ireland and some islands.

More Information

Folger Shakespeare: Search Shakespeare’s Works

Geneva Bible 1599 edition: Accessed via Bible Gateway

The Mammal Society: Weasel

Ovid, Metamorphoses, Book 9 (accessed via Perseus Digital Library)

Physiologus, A Medieval Book of Nature Lore (translated by Curley, M.J. 1979, University of Chicago Press)

Topsell, E. 1607 A History of Four-footed Beasts (accessed via Archive.org)

Wildlife Trusts: Weasel