120 WILD BEASTS OF THE WORLD 



THE STOAT OR ERMINE 



{Mustela erminea) 



Our common gamekeeper's pest, the Stoat, is identical with the famous 

 Ermine whose fur trims the robe of royalty, for in cold climates it changes 

 its coat of chestnut above and white below for a pure white all over except 

 for the black tuft at the end of the tail, which is the same all the year 

 round. This change seldom occurs in the south of England, but becomes 

 common as one goes north, till in the north of Scotland it is nearly 

 universal among these animals. Most Ermine fur, however, comes from 

 Siberia, but some from America, for the Stoat is one of the few beasts 

 which rangeall round the world. In Great Britain it is still common and 

 well known^ in spite of the persecution meted out to it by gamekeepers. 

 It is seldom kept in captivity, but has hybridised in that state with the 

 female Ferret, and the hybrids have bred together for two generations. 



THE WEASEL 



{Mustela vulgaris) 



This tiny, active, long-bodied little creature, the smallest of the carnivora, 

 has, like the Stoat, a wide range all round the world. Like that animal, 

 too, it turns white in winter, but not so readily ; thus, this change rarely 

 occurs in our British Weasels. The Weasel is much smaller than the 

 Stoat, though, as the sexes in both species differ much in size, there may 

 not be much to choose between a small female Stoat and a large 

 male Weasel. A safer distinction, therefore — the colours of the two 

 animals being much the same— is the tail, which in the Weasel never 

 has a black tip. 



Some confusion may be caused by the fact that what are called 

 Weasels in Ireland are not really of this species at all, but a small local 

 race of the Stoat {Mustela erminea hibernicd), for neither the real 

 Weasel nOr the Polecat are natives of that country. The true Weasel is 

 generally a comparatively harmless animal, its depredations being chiefly 

 on Mice and small birds; indeed, many people reckon it as highly useful. 



