Minnesota mammals

Long-tailed Weasel in Minnesota

Neogale frenata

Native to Minnesota SNR Unranked in Minnesota

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

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Long-tailed weasel standing alert in grass with its black-tipped tail curled behind it, Sonoma County, CaliforniaLong-tailed weasel pausing at the edge of a paved trail beside tall grass, San Francisco, CaliforniaLong-tailed weasel peering over a log, showing its cream underside and brown crown, VermontLong-tailed weasel with a bridled black-and-white facial mask peering through a gap in deck boards, TexasLong-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 Minnesota, by the numbers

Occasional in Minnesota 58th most recorded of 88 mammals logged in Minnesota

68 occurrence records
16 with iNaturalist photos
May 2, 2026 Last seen in Minnesota

Records from 2000–2026.

68 total records count every Minnesota occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 60 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Long-tailed Weasel in Minnesota

Most sightings fall in November to December.

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

Monthly Minnesota records (table)
MonthRecords
January5
February5
March2
April3
May1
June8
July6
August3
September4
October4
November10
December9

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

Seasonality

Year-round in Minnesota, with recorded sightings peaking in November–December, with a smaller rise in June–July.

Occurrence map

Where Long-tailed Weasel has been recorded in Minnesota

68 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

68 Minnesota records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Carlos Avery State Wildlife Management Area 3
Rum River State Forest 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 Minnesota

CountyRecords
Sherburne County 14
Ramsey County 7
Hennepin County 7
Anoka County 5
Scott County 3
Chisago County 3
Isanti County 3
St. Louis County 2
Meeker County 2
Swift County 2
Lac qui Parle County 2
Carlton County 2
16 other counties 16

The complete county distribution, spread across 28 Minnesota 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 Minnesota reach from the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area through local regional parks to the Minnesota River greenways, all southern, river-corridor sites with the brush and edge habitat this weasel hunts along. All 16 records come from iNaturalist alone, with no GBIF specimen data on file.

Reports run from May through August, months when this weasel’s fast, low hunting style along riverbanks and brush piles is most likely to put it in view of a hiker or paddler. NatureServe has not yet assigned the species a Minnesota rank, and its thin record count reflects how rarely a moving weasel gets a clean sighting, not any confirmed scarcity.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist.

Long-tailed weasel standing alert in grass with its black-tipped tail curled behind it, Sonoma County, California
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 Minnesota 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"