A polecat is a small, fierce carnivore native to Europe, Asia, and Africa, related to weasels, ferrets, and minks. Polecats have dark fur, sharp teeth, and a notorious defense mechanism: when threatened, they release an incredibly foul-smelling spray from glands near their tail. This stench is so powerful that it can drive away predators much larger than themselves.

The European polecat is the wild ancestor of the domestic ferret, which people have kept as pets for thousands of years. Wild polecats hunt at night for rabbits, rodents, frogs, and birds. They're solitary and territorial, marking their hunting grounds and defending them fiercely despite their small size.

In America, the word polecat usually refers to a skunk, even though skunks are a completely different animal. Early American settlers noticed that skunks used the same stinky defense as European polecats and borrowed the name. So if you're reading an old American story and someone mentions a polecat, they probably mean a skunk. But in most of the world, a polecat is that fierce little European hunter, not the black-and-white creature that might spray your pet.