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Originally Posted by richnfamous  I'd like to study stoats a bit more. I've seen them from time to time but only fleetingly.
Has anybody got any tips about where & when to find them? |
Like our other native mustelids, stoats are largely crepuscular ... that is they are mostly active during the twilight hours around dawn and again just after dusk.
Most of the rest of the time, during most of the year ... if their stomachs are full ... they will be happily asleep.
They commonly prey on voles, mice and rabbits, so the location that favours stoats best would be the same as favours those mammals too ... open grassy fields covering a light, sandy soil, bordered by dry-stone walling and adjacent to woodland.
Once you've found such a suitable setting, look out for evidence of stoats ... they mark out their territories by leaving scat in prominent places for other stoats to find ... on top of low walls, on prominent boulders, grassy knolls, tree stumps, etc.
Then you just need to be there at the right time of day ... and be patient.
