Blair Collection > Gaelic names of beasts (mammalia), birds, fishes, insects, reptiles, etc

POLECAT ' 203
Tha full mo mhuic-sa cheart cho meith ri f'uil do mhuic-sa.
The blood of my pig is just as rich as tlie blood of yours.
POINTER (see Dog).
POLECAT, MARTEN-CAT (see also Weasel).— Breun-
fhocullan ; Feocullan, fiadh-chat, fochdalan, foclan, focullan,
fumair, fumaire ; Tachan, taghan, taghan-tartaidhe or tutaidh,
taoghan.
Beech-marten ; Carre, club-tail ; Fewmot, fichet, fidget, fidgeon,
filmart, filmert, filmut, fitch, fitclial, fitchat, fitchan, fitchaw, fitchee,
fitchet, fitchock, fitchole, fitchuck, fithawe, fithowe, fiumart, flout,
fomard, fomart, fomud, fooamad, fooaraet, foomart, foomerd,
foomert, foomet, foomot, foomurt, foomut, foulmart, foulmarten,
foulmard, foumart, foumert, fourmart, fourmer, foutnart, fowmart,
fowmarte, foynie, fozzle, fullmart, fulmar, fulmarde, fulmart,
fulmarten or martern, fumard, fumart, fumat, fumert, fummad,
fummard, fummart, fummat, fummed, fummit, fummut, furner ;
Martill, martrick, martrone, mertrick ; Pine-marten ; Stote (Som.) ;
Tigulmard, turnjie ; Wild-cat, wilocat (Lane).
The supposed origin of polecat is from " poll," a hole or
burrow.
The polecat used to be plentiful in the Highlands, one
hundred and six animals under this name having been destroyed
at Glengarry from Whitsunday 1837 to Whitsunday 1840, and
two hundred and forty-six marten-cats. The latter in a hen-house
is most destructive, as it goes on killing till there is nothing left
alive. Both are now rare. A fine specimen of the former, twenty-
two inches in length, weighing two-and-three-quarter lbs., was
lately (1902) captured in a rabbit trap, in Ross-shire; a marten-
cat also was thus caught in Melfort about the same time. The
"martrick," Hector Becc says, was largely caught at one time.
It is the vuisteUa martis of Linnaeus; he (H. B.) describes it as a
carnivorous quadruped, larger than a cat, of a browaiish black
colour, and has a fine fur.
Capture of a Polecat. — A few days ago Mr Adam Henderson,
head keeper, trapped a fine specimen of the polecat in the Amat
Forest, Ai'dgay, Ross-shire. It was in splendid fur, and measured
twenty-four inches from tip to tip. Like other wild animals the
polecat is getting very rare. Even in Amat Forest, so far out
of the beaten track, none have been got for a number of years
back. The specimen caught has been sent to Mr Inglis, taxider-
mist, Dingwall, for preservation. It may be mentioned that Mr
Henderson captured a still more rare animal — a pine-marten -cat
in the same forest and near the same place.
Polecat in the Highlands. — Mr Bisshopp, naturalist, 130 George
Street, Oban, has just received a remarkably fine male specimen
of the polecat (^Muxtela Putorius). The animal is in exquisite fur.