About two weeks ago, the inspector of the Nature and Parks Authority identified a marbled weasel female with difficulty in movement and distress in the western Negev region.
The fact that he lay by the side of the road during the day, a time when the weasels usually doze off in their burrows since they are active in the early morning and evening hours, caught his attention.
The inspector contacted another regional inspector and the Nature and Parks Authority's 'Kibulens' system in favor of its rapid transfer to treatment at the Nature and Parks Authority's Wildlife Hospital and Safari in Ramat Gan.
The weasel female returns to nature, Photo: Roni Elias The Nature and Parks Authority
At the wildlife hospital, her weakness and exhaustion were quickly identified and a series of tests were performed on her.
Already in the early stages of the test it was found that her pupils were unresponsive and that she had lost balance on the right side of her body.
After an X-ray examination and a physical examination by palpation that were found to be normal, the possibility of fractures in the right side of the body was ruled out and the suspicion of neurological damage following head trauma arose.
Meanwhile, the wildlife hospital veterinarian noticed that her nipples were full of milk and therefore performed an ultrasound to see if she was pregnant.
The fetuses were supposed to be large enough to notice them (according to the mother's milk condition) and since they did not look like that, the staff realized that she had recently given birth.
At that moment, a team of people, along with the same inspector from the Nature and Parks Authority, was rushed to try to find the puppies in a cave near where they were.
The searches unfortunately yielded nothing.
At the same time, the team of caregivers at the Wildlife Hospital began providing professional and dedicated care to the weasel, which included drugs to lower stress in the brain and fluids and drugs designed to support the neurological system directly into a vein.
This, together with a daily follow-up of her recovery, which included weighing and monitoring her movements with the help of a camera in a hospital room that suits her needs.
Upon her recovery a few days later it was decided to return to nature in the area where she was found.
In light of the rarity of observations and cases where weasels encounter and encounter nature, in this way and in general, the Nature and Parks Authority decided to attach a special transmitter to the little weasel in order to monitor its movements and learn more about the weasel population in the area.
Injured while staying in nature, Photo: Roni Elias Nature and Parks Authority
Since this is the first known case in Israel in which an individual of a weasel, a mammal with a relatively small body is transmitted, the Nature and Parks Authority consulted with various parties to examine how to attach a transmitter to its body, including bat researcher Adi Rahum from Yossi Yuval's Bat Laboratory. Skilled in transmitting bats, which are small mammals.
All this in order to ensure the transmission of the transmitter over an effective period of time and also to prevent any damage to it or its ability to move.
After consulting the subject it was decided to use a telemetric transmitter and with medical tissue glue that could attach the transmitter to the weasel’s body for several weeks according to the assessment.
The operation was set up successfully and the weasel with the transmitter was returned back to nature.
The Nature and Parks Authority now hopes that with the help of a special antenna they will be able to receive the information collected on the transmitter and thus keep it at a distance, learn and get to know the weasel movement in Israel better.
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