Editing Stoat (section)

===Diet===
As with the [[least weasel]], mouse-like rodents predominate in the stoat's diet. It regularly preys on larger rodent and [[lagomorph]] species, and takes individuals far larger than itself. In Russia, its prey includes rodents and lagomorphs such as [[European water vole]]s, [[common hamster]]s, [[pika]]s and others, which it overpowers in their burrows. Prey species of secondary importance include small [[bird]]s, [[fish]], and [[shrew]]s and, more rarely, [[amphibian]]s, [[lizard]]s, and [[insect]]s.<ref name="s1018">{{Harvnb|Heptner|Sludskii|2002|p=1018}}</ref> It also preys on [[lemming]]s.<ref>{{cite news |title=It's Feast Or Famine: Predators May Drive Lemming Cycles, Science Researchers Say |date=2003 |author=American Association For The Advancement Of Science |publisher=ScienceDaily |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031104063521.htm#:~:text=The%20results%20showed%20the%20stoats,exclusively%20on%20lemmings%20for%20prey |access-date=2023-11-28 |archive-date=2016-09-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160905111350/https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/11/031104063521.htm#:~:text=The%20results%20showed%20the%20stoats,exclusively%20on%20lemmings%20for%20prey |url-status=live }}</ref>
In Great Britain, [[European rabbit]]s are an important food source, with the frequency in which stoats prey on them having increased between the 1960s and mid 1990s since the end of the [[myxomatosis]] epidemic. Typically, male stoats prey on rabbits more frequently than females do, which depend to a greater extent on smaller rodent species. British stoats rarely kill shrews, [[rat]]s, [[squirrel]]s and water voles, though rats may be an important food source locally. In Ireland, shrews and rats are frequently eaten. In mainland Europe, water voles make up a large portion of the stoat's diet. [[Hare]]s are sometimes taken, but are usually young specimens.<ref name="h463"/> In New Zealand, the stoat feeds principally on birds, including the rare [[Kiwi (bird)|kiwi]], [[New Zealand kaka|kaka]], [[Yellowhead (bird)|mohua]], [[yellow-crowned parakeet]], and [[New Zealand dotterel]].<ref name="h463">{{Harvnb|Harris|Yalden|2008|p=463}}</ref> Cases are known of stoats preying on young [[muskrat]]s. The stoat typically eats about {{cvt|50|g}} of food a day, which is equivalent to 25% of the animal's live weight.<ref name="s1020">{{Harvnb|Heptner|Sludskii|2002|p=1020}}</ref>

[[File:Stoat killing a rabbit.jpg|thumb|Stoat killing a [[European rabbit]]]]
The stoat is an opportunistic predator that moves rapidly and checks every available burrow or crevice for food. Because of their larger size, male stoats are less successful than females in pursuing rodents far into tunnels. Stoats regularly climb trees to gain access to birds' nests, and are common raiders of nest boxes, particularly those of large species. The stoat reputedly mesmerises prey such as rabbits by a "dance" (sometimes called the [[weasel war dance]]), though this behaviour could be linked to ''[[Metastrongylidae|Skrjabingylus]]'' infections.<ref name="h463"/> The stoat seeks to immobilize large prey such as rabbits with a bite to the spine at the back of the neck. The stoat may [[surplus killing|surplus kill]] when the opportunity arises, though excess prey is usually [[Cache (biology)|cached]] and eaten later to avoid [[obesity]], as overweight stoats tend to be at a disadvantage when pursuing prey into their burrows.<ref name="v417">{{Harvnb|Verts|Carraway|1998|p=417}}</ref> Small prey typically die instantly from a bite to the back of the neck, while larger prey, such as rabbits, typically die of [[Shock (circulatory)|shock]], as the stoat's canine teeth are too short to reach the spinal column or major arteries.<ref name="h463"/>