Mustelidae

The Mustelidae are a fascinating family of mammals, many of whom are found at Point Reyes. Examples include otters and skunks, but they’re often hard to find because they’re often solitary, nocturnal, or spend time underground. Today, though, I was lucky enough to spend time with two species of the genus: a long-tailed weasel and an American badger.

Early in the afternoon, I was walking through a field to photograph some elk when a long-tailed weasel popped up from a hole in front of me. I didn’t know how long the encounter would last, so I immediately fired off several frames. Eventually, I got into a better position and started capturing more composed frames. The weasel seemed even more interested in me than I was in it, coming within two feet of me. I spent the next hour following it around the field while it popped up in different spots from a whole network of tunnels.

Later that afternoon, I spotted a badger from the road. I pulled over, squeezed under the barbed-wire cattle fence, and approached cautiously. The badger was busy digging for a meal, so I managed to get reasonably close. Surprisingly, it didn’t seem bothered by my presence and happily wandered all over the field while I tried to predict its path and got myself into position for a photograph.