A polecat or European polecat; also called a foumart, an animal known for its musky smell and nocturnal hunting habits.
From Old French fitche or German Filder. The word likely derives from the animal's tendency to burrow or 'fitche' (thrust) itself underground.
Fitchers inspired the tale of the Fitcher's Bird in Grimm's fairy tales—these nocturnal predators were mysterious creatures that captured people's dark imagination, probably because they were rarely seen but often smelled.
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