Mustela putorius; the Polecat (Fithowe)
Intermediate in size between the stoat (Mustela erminea) and the pine marten (Martes martes), the polecat is the largest of the Mustela genus in the UK. Like the pine marten it was persecuted to the extent that it was driven to extinction in the vast majority of its UK range but fortunately not as much as the pine marten. The largest remaining population was in North Wales, where it has been spreading from for some time. In Cheshire, the records from the period 2000 - 2007 seem to have remained constant when compared to the pre-2000 distribution. The polecat gets its common name from the French poulet (chicken) and chat (cat), describing its habit of raiding hen houses that it was so ruthlessly assaulted for. Part of its scientific name (putorius), however, describes its foul smell; in fact the polecat can eject a smell in a similar way to skunk species when threatened using anal scent glands and like other mustelids these glands are important in communication and marking territory.