stoat

Carnivorous mammal Mustela erminea of the northern hemisphere, in the weasel family, about 37 cm/15 in long including the black-tipped tail. It has a long body and a flattened head. The upper parts and tail are red-brown, and the underparts are white. In the colder regions, the coat turns white (ermine) in winter. Its young are called kits.

The stoat is an efficient predator, killing its prey (typically rodents and rabbits) by biting the back of the neck. It needs to consume the equivalent of almost a third of its body weight each day. Females are about half the size of males, and males and females live in separate territories. Stoats live in Europe, Asia, and North America; they have been introduced to New Zealand.

The alternate Eurasian name ‘stoat’ is used especially during the summer, when the coat is brown. The fur is used commercially.

stoat

Another name for the ermine or short-tailed weasel Mustela erminea, used for Old World members of this northern hemisphere species.