Stoat Mustela erminea
This long and slender animal is a speedy, fierce little hunter and is aggressively territorial, and is particularly deft at climbing trees. The stoat is identifiable not only from its slim body, but the warm reddish brown fur, white underside and the long tail with a black tip.
Conservation status in Norfolk
The stoat is not threatened, although there is no legal protection in the UK.
Lack of available prey is probably the main cause of death for young stoats for which mortality is high. Other predators include owls, hawks or larger carnivores such as the fox and particularly the domestic cat.
There is little competition for food between stoats and weasels. The stoat is much more aggressive and can handle larger prey, but the weasel is an excellent 'tunnel-hunter', reaching small rodents which the stoat cannot.
How to help
Report your sightings to the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists Society who maintain a database of mammal distribution within Norfolk for conservation purposes.
Gordon Coupland
Information on the Stoat
How to recognise
The Stoat is a member of a family of animals that include the weasel, the otter and the badger. It has a long slim body with short legs. The fur of a stoat is mainly a warm reddish brown although the underside is white or cream in colour. The stoat has quite a long tail (between 9-14 cm) which has a distinctive black tip. Some stoats turn partially or completely white in winter when they are considered to be in ermine. However, even if a stoat is in complete ermine the tip of its tail is always black.
The overall dimensions of a stoat (excluding the tail) vary from between 27-31cm for a male and 24-30cm for a female.
Where to see
The stoat occurs throughout Britain and Ireland. In Norfolk it is common and widespread, most often seen when driving as it speeds across country lanes in front of your car like a clockwork toy. Numbers do fluctuate with the availability of prey and populations were severely reduced after myxomatosis wiped out nearly all the county's rabbits in the 1950's.
A good place to see stoats hunting rabbits is at the NWT reserve at Weeting Heath.
When to see
Stoats do not hibernate and can be encountered all through the year. Although usually fiercely territorial, male stoats will range widely during the spring in search of females. Stoats in ermine are rare but can be encountered during the winter months.
Females give birth to 6-12 young in spring and feed them for up to 12 weeks, by which time they are developing into efficient hunters and may be seen as a family group playing above ground or on hunting expeditions.
Did you know?
Stoats are curious animals and will investigate squeaking noises especially if they sound like the squeal of a rabbit in distress. It is said to be possible to attract them by standing still and sucking hard on the back of your hand!
Related questions
How do you tell a stoat from a weasel?
The stoat has a black tip to its tail and is slightly larger than a weasel.
Are magpies killing all the songbirds?
The simple answer is no. Magpies and songbirds have coexisted for many thousands of years and there is absolutely no evidence that widespread declines of any species can be blamed on magpies. It is true that during the breeding season magpies take the eggs and young of small birds as do great-spotted woodpeckers, jays, stoats, hedgehogs and lots of other predators. In fact some songbird species whose nests are attacked by magpies such as greenfinch and goldfinch have increased in numbers and other songbirds, such as skylarks, whose nests are rarely predated by magpies have massively declined.
To demonise magpies and blame them as the main cause of loss of songbirds is simply wrong. More important factors such as food supply and availability of suitable breeding habitat are the real determinants of songbird populations.
How do I tell the difference between a mink and an otter?
The non-native American mink is in the same mammal family as the otter, stoat and weasel, and resembles all of these species in general body shape. It is quite commonly confused with the otter, especially in wetland habitats, but there are several important differences. It has a long, slim body, short legs and a round, fluffy tail that is about a third of its body length. The otter’s tail is broad-based, flat and tapers towards the tip and is about half the body length. In size American mink are larger than stoats and weasels but smaller than a domestic cat and about half the size of an otter. The average body length is 60cm for males and 50cm for females. The tail adds an extra 14 – 21cm. The fur is rich, glossy and generally dark brown or black, with a white or pale patch on the chin only. The pale markings on an otter extend from the chin to the chest. The muzzle of a mink is pointed and ferret-like whereas the otter has a flattened head shape and a broad dog-like muzzle. The mink swims high in the water with the head and body visible but the otter swims low in the water with only the head and part of the tail on show.