David Element
Wildlife
Photography and Digital Video Images
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ Mammals 20 – Stoats

STOAT Mustela erminea stabilis
- An
impromptu (and rather lucky) image of a curious young Stoat Mustela erminea stabilis
watching the photographer. It is difficult to judge whether this highly
fortified position was selected by accident or on purpose! This portrait
was taken some years ago, at a time when sightings were more frequent.
These delightfully animated creatures seem to be declining and sightings
are now something of a rarity in the part of Surrey in which this
photograph was taken. There is no shortage of prey species, particularly Rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus, so the cause of this
apparent decline may be due to something more insidious, perhaps as a
consequence of damaging chemicals (?pesticides) entering the food chain.
It is not known whether this drop in population is being mirrored
elsewhere in the UK, but there is always a concern when top predators show
a sustained reduction in numbers as this reflects upon the poor health of
the remainder of the food chain.
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