We continue on January 26th by exploring the fascinating world of winter mammals. Discover the behaviors of stoats, weasels, hedgehogs, rabbits, and hares during the coldest month. Learn how these animals adapt to the harsh conditions and the unique signs they leave behind. Whether you're a wildlife enthusiast or just curious about nature, this article will provide a captivating look at January's mammals.
Article
Stoat
Stoats are still active. They climb trees and hide there waiting to catch birds. Unlike their northern cousins, London’s stoats do not turn white or even pied but remain brown. The ermine used to trim royal regalia comes from stoats living in the highlands of Scotland. Normally, one only gets a flash sighting. If there is a black tip to the tail it always indicates a stoat. A smaller animal with no black tip would indicate a weasel.
Weasel
Weasels, undeterred by the cold, are finding and devouring sleeping mice and rats. They can even hunt under snow and have been known to pull birds down through the surface. In harsh weather they have the reputation of hunting in packs. These murderous parties have also been known to bite men and dogs which have crossed their paths. It has always been thought to bring bad luck if a weasel runs across your path. With them preferring to live in dry walls and hedgerows at the side of roads this is a common occurrence in London.
They have always had a bad reputation, even the word indicating some form of deception in phrases like ‘weasel words’ or ‘to catch a weasel asleep’. In the past it was worse, with them being accused of sucking eggs, running through wedding rings and turning into fairies if you chased them. In medieval times a ‘weasel’ was the name given to a sexually abandoned women. They were also always being accused of dancing to hypnotise their prey, although now it is thought this may be due to the irritation of parasitic worms in their nasal sinuses.
Hedgehog
Railway embankments are a favourite place for hedgehogs to hibernate. There they are now rolled in a ball, covered with dry leaves, deep among the roots of a tree or perhaps under a drift of leaves. They may be 1 degree celsius and still breathing every 10 seconds rather than their usual rate of once or twice a second. Their sleep is deeper than most other mammals with them occasionally raising their spines when a noisy Londoner passes by. They are also not using their kidneys and their heartbeat may be reduced from 180 to 120 beats per minute. It is only the energy reserves in their brown fat which will provide enough heat to avoid them freezing.
Rabbit and Hare
In hard weather rabbits take to their burrows and hares seek refuge in hedgerows. Rabbits, which usually feed at dawn and dusk, may now be seen feeding at any time, even in Hyde Park. Both may be gnawing at barks or feeding at the edges of fields and woods where there is better protection from the elements. Consequently, more are found dead on the roads. In the hardest weather, hares are even known to lie in the snow till an ‘igloo’ forms naturally around them, keeping a small hole free so that they are able to breathe.
After snow they leave tracks that are easier than most to identify. They both look like pairs of exclamation marks with the hare’s being naturally larger. The dots are the front paws and the lines are their hind paws. The hare’s tracks are much farther apart as it can run up to thirty miles per hour and leap as far as fifteen feet. Cat marks are similar to those of a hare, except that the exclamation marks are upside down and usually not so well formed.
