California mammals

Long-tailed Weasel in California

Neogale frenata

Native to California SNR Unranked in California

Not listed as nonindigenous in California by USGS NAS; native to its California range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: benjchristensen · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel standing alert in grass with its black-tipped tail curled behind it, Sonoma County, CaliforniaPhoto: Jay Paroline · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel pausing at the edge of a paved trail beside tall grass, San Francisco, CaliforniaPhoto: Bernie Paquette · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel peering over a log, showing its cream underside and brown crown, VermontPhoto: johnyochum · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel with a bridled black-and-white facial mask peering through a gap in deck boards, TexasPhoto: Bob Nieman · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel standing alert among limestone rocks, New Mexico

Photo: benjchristensen · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel standing alert in grass with its black-tipped tail curled behind it, Sonoma County, CaliforniaPhoto: Jay Paroline · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel pausing at the edge of a paved trail beside tall grass, San Francisco, CaliforniaPhoto: Bernie Paquette · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel peering over a log, showing its cream underside and brown crown, VermontPhoto: johnyochum · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel with a bridled black-and-white facial mask peering through a gap in deck boards, TexasPhoto: Bob Nieman · CC BY 4.0Long-tailed weasel standing alert among limestone rocks, New Mexico

Long-tailed Weasel in California, by the numbers

Common in California 47th most recorded of 241 mammals logged in California

2,350 occurrence records

1,620 with iNaturalist photos

Records from 2000–2026.

2,350 total records count every California occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 2,317 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Long-tailed Weasel in California

Most sightings fall in May to June.

2,317 California occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly California records (table)

Month	Records
January	72
February	81
March	161
April	287
May	494
June	443
July	294
August	183
September	115
October	82
November	53
December	52

Monthly long-tailed weasel occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in California, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in California, with recorded sightings peaking in May–June.

Occurrence map

Where Long-tailed Weasel has been recorded in California

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

299 California records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Point Reyes National Seashore	75
Phillip Burton Wilderness Area	63
Golden Gate National Recreation Area	56
Wilder Ranch State Park	30
Half Moon Bay State Beach	17
Carrizo Plain National Monument	15
Yosemite National Park	14
Sequoia National Park	12

Protected places with the most long-tailed weasel sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in California

County	Records
San Diego County	254
San Mateo County	219
Marin County	205
Sonoma County	193
San Luis Obispo County	141
Santa Cruz County	130
Santa Barbara County	116
Humboldt County	89
Los Angeles County	81
Monterey County	77
Mono County	62
San Francisco County	54
37 other counties	729

The complete county distribution, spread across 49 California counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Long-tailed Weasel records span only part of California’s unusually varied landscape. Coastal ranges, the Sierra Nevada, northern forests, inland valleys, and southern deserts offer different cover, prey, water, and routes between habitats.

Reports gather near roads, public lands, and settled areas, while private ranches and remote mountains are less evenly watched. California’s freeways and dense development can split movement corridors, but mapped records don’t reveal population size on either side.

The California record set contains 1,586 research-grade community observations. Monthly patterns can also reflect weather and observer activity, so they shouldn’t be treated as a direct count of animals.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist.

Full species profile Long-tailed Weasel Neogale frenata Size 24.8 cm9.8 in Weight 170 g6 oz Lifespan Up to 8.8 yr View the full profile

More mammals in California in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"