habitat_narrative
Terrestrial
This species is mainly found in savannah and grassland habitats, although it probably has a wide habitat tolerance and has been recorded from lowland rainforest, semi-desert grassland, fynbos (with dense grass) and pine plantations (Larivière & Jennings 2009; Stuart & Stuart 2013). Preferred habitats are grassy; for example, the few records from arid southwestern Africa are associated with semi-desert grassland (Stuart & Stuart 2013). African Striped Weasels may reach their highest densities in moist grasslands (Rowe-Rowe 1992) and are also found in montane grassland (Medland & Dudley 1995). Road kills have been collected from areas of pastures and cultivated fields (Monadjem 1998; Stuart et al. 2015).They are predominantly nocturnal but are occasionally seen during the day. They may make use of existing rodent burrows but are also good burrowers themselves. As such, soil texture may also be an important habitat determinant (Rowe-Rowe 1992). This speciesâ body shape, elongated with short, powerful limbs, makes it ideally suited to a subterranean lifestyle. It has relatively poor eyesight, probably because it spends most of its activity periods underground, and hunts using smell rather than sight. This poor eyesight may be one of the reasons that many of the specimens obtained for museum collections are in fact road kill victims.
This species is a specialist predator, feeding only on warm-blooded vertebrates, and there are no formal records of them feeding on invertebrates, amphibians or reptiles (Stuart & Stuart 2013). They mainly feed on rodents (often catching them in their burrows), moles and shrews. Birds, on the ground, are taken opportunistically (Rowe-Rowe 1978b). They can prey on rodents up to their own size.
Interestingly, females do not appear to experience oestrus (Rowe-Rowe 1975, 1978c). They are generally solitary animals, widely dispersed, so the chances of an oestrus female encountering an adult male are very small. However, they do indulge in prolonged copulation that lasts between 65 and 72 minutes (Rowe-Rowe 1978c), which may induce ovulation (Rowe-Rowe 1975) and represent an adaptation to a solitary lifestyle.
Ecosystem and cultural services: As African Striped Weasels only occur at low densities, they do not necessarily keep rodent populations under control.
