---
title: "Tourão"
description: "Mustela putorius — Mamíferos. The European polecat (Mustela putorius), also known as the western polecat, is a mustelid species occurring in Europe and the Rif mountains."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/pt/animal/western-polecat
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Tourão

> Mustela putorius — Mamíferos. The European polecat (Mustela putorius), also known as the western polecat, is a mustelid species occurring in Europe and the Rif mountains.

- Scientific name: *Mustela putorius*
- Category: `mammals` (Mamíferos)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 2255
- Wikidata: [Q26582](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q26582)
- iNaturalist taxon: [41812](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/41812)

## Names

- en: Western Polecat
- de: Europäischer Iltis
- es: Turón europeo
- fr: Putois d'Europe
- nl: Bunzing
- pt: Tourão
- pl: Tchórz zwyczajny

## Countries with the most observations

GB (228), IT (222), FR (131), RU (129), DK (128), ES (118), DE (97), AT (91), HR (67), NL (62), PL (47), CH (37)

## Summary

The European polecat (Mustela putorius), also known as the western polecat, is a mustelid species occurring in Europe and the Rif mountains. It is of a generally dark brown colour, with a pale underbelly and a dark mask across the face. Occasionally, colour mutations including albinos, leucists, isabellinists, xanthochromists, amelanists, and erythrists occur. It has a shorter, more compact body than other Mustela species, a more powerfully built skull and dentition, is less agile, and is well known for having the characteristic ability to secrete a particularly foul-smelling liquid to mark its territory.
It is much…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_polecat

## Photo

![Tourão](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/western-polecat/medium.jpg)

Photo: Nicolás Tamargo · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/143636100

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/western-polecat?lang=pt` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).