281 



CHAP. XXVIII. 



THE STOAT OK ERMrjTE. — rERSEVERANCE OF STOAT AFTER ITS 

 PREY. — DESTRUCTION OF GAME BY STOATS. — THE ^S^-EASEL : ITS 

 FEROCITY. — FOKD OF EGGS AND YOUNG BIRDS. 



The stoat or ermine, though common in Britain, is 

 very numerous in the wilds of Eussia, Siberia, and Lap- 

 land, and other cold countries in Europe-Asia. It is 

 nearly ten inches from the nose to the rump, and the 

 tail is four inches and three quarters long ; the stoat is 

 about one-third larger than the weasel. The other 

 points of distinction are, that the head of the stoat is 

 broader in proportion to its length, and the tail larger 

 and more bush}^, and tipped with black ; the upper part 

 of the head, neck, and tail are light reddish brown, the 

 under parts white, tinged with yellow ; the ends of the 

 ears and toes are yellowish white. It is known in this 

 country as the stoat, but when it has been long exposed 

 to severe cold, either from its choosing to inhabit moun- 

 tainous localities, the entire fur becomes white, with a 

 slight tinge of yellow. The change of colour which takes 

 place during the colder months of the year is now as- 

 certained, with tolerable accuracy, to be caused by an 

 actual whitening of the fur, and not by the gradual sub- 

 stitution of white for dark hairs, as was for some time 



