Status of the polecat Mustela putorius (Linnaeus,1758) in France and management implications

The polecat Mustela putorius Linnaeus, 1758 is an elusive species whose lifestyle is relatively unknown. In France, the species might be legally hunted. Knowledge of the distribution of the species on the national scale is a necessary prerequisite for the implementation of appropriated management and conservation measures. The National Wildlife and Hunting Agency (ONCFS) has developed a method for collecting data at the national scale so that to create presence maps of small and medium-sized carnivores. The presence map of the polecat is presented in this note, based on data collected from 2001 to 2010. The map shows that the species is fairly well distributed throughout the country with the exception of some regions that deserve further study. According to current knowledge, the factors threatening the polecat in France are above all the deep modifications of the preferential habitats of the polecat, particularly the important decrease of wetlands and hedged farmland; the increase of the road network and the poor state of rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (Linnaeus, 1758) populations, an important food resource notably in the Mediterranean regions. The importance of secondary rodenticide poisoning needs to be evaluated. We postulated that trapping is not nowadays a major threat to the species in France. Management and conservation measures of its habitat through the implementation of public policies could favor its maintenance.