The Biology and Conservation of Musteloids is the third in a trilogy on carnivores produced by Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, the first two focusing on felids and canids. These volumes review and summarize the main aspects of biology, ecology and conservation issues for the three main carnivore groups, and are written by experts in each respective field.
This third volume brings an element of novelty that its predecessors were not able to match: musteloids is not a term you see a great deal in ecological or conservation literature. Many publications about mustelids and their relatives are several decades old, and out of print. The more recent books on this group tend to focus on one or a few closely related species, or consider more species but only address a single topic. The Biology and Conservation of Musteloids fulfills a hitherto neglected need, arguably being the first book to present a synthesis of research conducted on all the species in this enigmatic taxon.
The groups covered are the Mustelidae (mink, polecats, stoats, weasels, martens, otters, badgers and wolverine), Mephitidae (skunks and stink badgers), Procyonidae (raccoons, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, olinguitos, ringtails and cacomistles), and Ailuridae (the red panda Ailurus fulgens). The first half of the book is devoted to summaries of various aspects of musteloid biology, including physiology, ecology, population dynamics, sociality and disease. In addition, two chapters address people's relations with musteloids, and the challenges of researching these species. For much of this section the authors are forced to revert to synthesis and summary, because of the breadth of the subjects addressed and the diversity of the musteloid superfamily. However, they draw on a wide range of examples. The book is well cross-referenced, and uses an accessible and informal writing style that does not debase the science.
The second half is dedicated to species case studies. Most of these focus on North American or European species, with only a few focusing on species in South and Central America and Asia, and none on African musteloids. Africa has the fewest musteloid species of any continent, but given that the greatest musteloid diversity is in Central America, there is some imbalance—a reflection of the fact that most research on musteloids has been conducted in the western hemisphere, with species in tropical regions less studied. Although this book is a celebration of all available research on musteloids, the case study selection indicates how much we still have to learn about many species.
What the case study section represents well is the myriad ways people have interacted with musteloids. These swing between extremes, from significant efforts to protect and restore the last few individuals of some species (black-footed ferret Mustela nigripes and European mink Mustela lutreola), to efforts to exterminate species that have become rather too successful (the stoat Mustela erminea, weasel Mustela nivalis and ferret Mustela furo in New Zealand, and the common raccoon Procyon lotor). These case studies reflect our varied and often turbulent relationships with these carnivores, and our attempts to overcome aspects of their biology that either predicate or preclude extirpation.
The concluding chapter considers strategies for conservation of musteloids, including appraising the role of musteloids as fundraising ambassadors and umbrella species, their value in terms of ecosystem services, and the potential for effective conservation in differing geopolitical and economic contexts. We are not left with any strong message about how to conserve these species more effectively, but it is uncommon to see musteloids considered as a group through a conservation lens. Although over three-quarters of musteloids are categorized as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, Chapter 7 relates how we have in recent memory witnessed the extinction of a mustelid: the sea mink Neovison macrodon, formerly found along North America's east coast and last recorded in 1894. The Critically Endangered European mink could become the next mammalian extinction this century, and over half of otter species are threatened.
The Biology and Conservation of Musteloids is a comprehensive synthesis of and much-needed addition to its field. As well as offering a valuable reference for everything we know about musteloid ecology, the book also identifies avenues for further work and research, in both ecology and conservation. I note that the volumes on canids and felids are available as a two-volume set named Biology and Conservation of Wild Carnivores. Hopefully this volume on musteloids will be added to this, to form a trilogy, with musteloids taking their rightful place alongside their larger relatives.
