Editing Stoat (section)

===Fur===
[[File:Mustela erminea winter cropped.jpg|thumb|A stoat in winter fur]]
The winter fur is very dense and silky, but quite closely lying and short, while the summer fur is rougher, shorter and sparse.<ref name="s997"/> In summer, the fur is sandy-brown on the back and head and a white below. The division between the dark back and the light belly is usually straight, though this trait is only present in 13.5% of Irish stoats. The stoat moults twice a year. In spring, the moult is slow, starting from the forehead, across the back, toward the belly. In autumn, the moult is quicker, progressing in the reverse direction. The moult, initiated by [[photoperiod]], starts earlier in autumn and later in spring at higher latitudes. In the stoat's northern range, it adopts a completely white coat (save for the black tail-tip) during the winter period.<ref name="h457"/> Differences in the winter and summer coats are less apparent in southern forms of the species.<ref name="s998">{{Harvnb|Heptner|Sludskii|2002|p=998}}</ref> In the species' southern range, the coat remains brown, but is denser and sometimes paler than in summer.<ref name="h457"/>