Michigan mammals

Long-tailed Weasel in Michigan

Neogale frenata

Native to Michigan S5 Secure in Michigan

Not listed as nonindigenous in Michigan by USGS NAS; native to its Michigan 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 Michigan, by the numbers

Rare in Michigan 51st most recorded of 75 mammals logged in Michigan

87 occurrence records

31 with iNaturalist photos

May 18, 2026 Last seen in Michigan

Records from 2000–2026.

87 total records count every Michigan occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 80 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Long-tailed Weasel in Michigan

Most sightings fall in July.

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

Monthly Michigan records (table)

Month	Records
January	6
February	3
March	6
April	7
May	8
June	3
July	13
August	7
September	7
October	4
November	9
December	7

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

Seasonality

Year-round in Michigan, with recorded sightings peaking in July, with a smaller rise in November and May.

Occurrence map

Where Long-tailed Weasel has been recorded in Michigan

87 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

87 Michigan records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Rose Lake State Wildlife Area	3
Ottawa National Forest	2
Shingleton State Foreset Area	2
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore	1
Kellogg Biological Station and Experimental forest	1
Kellogg Forest	1
St. Johns Marsh State Wildlife Area	1
Asylum Lake	1

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 Michigan

County	Records
Ingham County	10
Washtenaw County	10
Kalamazoo County	5
Iron County	4
Jackson County	4
Berrien County	4
Benzie County	3
Alger County	3
Isabella County	3
Montcalm County	3
Lake Superior County	3
Houghton County	3
27 other counties	32

The complete county distribution, spread across 39 Michigan 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 in Michigan reach from Keweenaw National Historical Park and Ottawa National Forest to Hiawatha National Forest, all Upper Peninsula sites with the mixed forest and wetland edge this weasel hunts along. All 27 records come from iNaturalist alone, with no GBIF specimen data on file.

Reports run from May through August, the months when this weasel’s fast, low hunting style along logs, stone walls, and brush piles is most likely to put it in view of a hiker. NatureServe ranks the species S5, Secure, in Michigan, though its low record count reflects how rarely a moving weasel gets a clean sighting rather than any real scarcity.

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 Michigan 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"