56 MAMMALS. 



as the "Whittret" ( = Whitethroat). The food of this 



species consists chiefly of the brains of rats, mice, and moles, 



all of which are seized by the head, the brains 



>od< sucked, and the body left. The alleged habit 



of blood - sucking is discredited by many. When hard 



pressed, these animals will eat carrion, and are at times 



partial to eggs, though these belong for the most part to 



wild birds that nest in trees and not to game-birds. They 



are also known to swim in pursuit of water-voles. 



These animals, though mostly feeding at night, are 

 frequently met with in daylight; and I came across two 

 in the same week a few miles out of Winchester. 



The greatest enemies of the weasel are the larger birds 

 of prey ; and it is said to get the better of even the larg- 

 est occasionally, clinging to their throat and 

 bringing them back to earth faint from loss 

 of blood. I have seen one carried up by a partridge, but 

 the ascent was brief, the descent rapid, and the death of 

 the stoat, brought about by a keeper who had no respect 

 for the fact that " nature is one with rapine," the immedi- 

 ate sequel. 



The weasel nests in some bank or hollow tree, and is 

 prolific, the litter numbering from four to six. The 



alleged rearing of a second, or even third, 

 Breeding. ,. ' 



litter appears to rest on scanty evidence. 



The weasel is less striking in appearance than its British 



relatives. The tail, more particularly, is inconspicuous, 

 head small, neck long and muscular, body 

 s l en der an( i arched. In colour, it is usually 

 reddish above, white below. A winter change 



of coat is occasionally observed, but the phenomenon is of 



irregular occurrence. 



[Bell and other early writers alluded to a smaller species, 



an error apparently arising from the great variation in size 



to which the female is especially liable.] 



If appearance went for much in zoological classification, 



