This selection of Irish animals, native or introduced, is taken from the Appletree Press title Animals of Ireland. There will be a number of extracts from the book in coming months. The book contains highly detailed full colour illustrations to complement the detailed explanatory text.

Irish Stoat
Mustela erminea hibernica
Easóg

This is the 'mighty midget' of Irish mammals. Not only can it kill animals much larger than itself but it can lift and drag them away as well. Neither Rabbit nor Rat has the defence to withstand attack by this savage little carnivore. Were it much larger it would probably present a threat to man himself. There are, in fact, stories of people having been attacked both in Ireland and elsewhere.

The prey is dispatched with clinical efficiency, the Stoat inflicting a lethal bite on the nape of the victim's neck. Much has been written about the manner in which they stalk their prey; the strange ritualistic dancing which seems to hypnotise the hapless Rabbit has been well documented.

The gambolling has been noticed in a less sinister context. Stoats with their young sometimes indulge in high jinks, perhaps as instruction to the young. It nevertheless looks like mere fun and games. The young, which may number anything from a pair to a dozen, are produced in a single litter in spring or summer. They stay with the adults as a family unit until the autumn at least after which they seek out their own territories.

The Irish Stoat is a distinct, endemic race. It is smaller and slightly darker than the British Stoat. It is deep reddish brown above with a noticeable black tip to the tail. The underbody is creamy white but it is irregularly demarcated from the upperparts, not neatly so as in the British race. The average overall length is about 38 cm (15 inches), a third of which is tail. Males are larger and much heavier than the females. The body is long, narrow and sausage-shaped. The legs look unusually short but the paws are proportionately large and leave a distinctive mark in soft ground. The head is small with shining nose and beady eyes and the ears are noticeably rounded.

Stoats are remarkably inquisitive animals and many people will recount an experience of being watched or encircled by one in apparent curiosity. They will run along or in and out of stone walls with breathtaking agility and often show a reluctance to depart even on close approach.

There are no Weasels in Ireland though the Stoat is often called Weasel, perhaps as a corruption of the similar-sounding Irish name Uasal.

Other Medium Mammals from Animals of Ireland include:
Badger |
Fox |
Irish Hare |
Mink |
Otter |
Pine Marten |
Rabbit