European polecat In the former Soviet Union, polecats are hunted chiefly in late autumn and early winter with guns and hunting dogs, as well as foothold traps and wooden snares. However, even in season, hunters rarely catch more than 10-15 polecats. The species does not constitute an important element in former Soviet commercial hunting, and is usually only caught incidentally. The European polecat is a valuable fur bearer, whose pelt (fitch) is more valuable than the steppe polecat's. Its skin is used primarily in the production of jackets, capes and coats. It is particularly well suited for trimmings for women's clothing. The
Saharan striped polecat and above a black snout. It is sometimes confused with the striped polecat though it is generally smaller and has distinct facial markings. The Saharan stripe polecat is distributed around the northern and southern edges of the Sahara Mauretania, Western Sahara and Morocco in the west along the Mediterranean littoral of North Africa to the Nile Valley in Egypt, while in the south its range is the Sahel east to Sudan and Djibouti. The Saharan stripe polecat is found on the margins of deserts especially in mountains, in arid stony terrain and sandy semideserts, rarely seen in woodlands and is