tailieunhanh - bbc wildlife magazine 2010 phần 9

Vương quốc Anh? Phải đọc? motorsport tạp chí AutoSport được tôn kính của người hâm mộ và nhân viên ngành công nghiệp cũng như là nguồn gốc tối hậu của xe thể thao tin tức và phân tích. Chuyên gia biên tập các tạp chí? | Out and about. Understand mammal behaviour Stoats STEVE HARRIS I Bristol University s I mammalogist orI how . to read body language Illustrations by Federico Gemma As the vegetation dies back in November it s a good time to look out for stoats. The moult into their winter coats is well advanced by now so in northern areas many will already be white making them conspicuous in snow-free areas. Stoats eat 25 per cent of their body weight a day so they spend a lot of time hunting. Their long thin shape enables them to pursue prey above and below ground but your best chance of seeing one is in rough grassland around rabbit warrens or near wood piles. FAST AND FURIOUS Stoats hunt small mammals opportunistically moving rapidly and investigating all possible hiding places. Speed enables them to take prey by surprise and makes it hard for bigger predators and birds of prey to catch them . The senses of smell and hearing are most important when hunting in dense cover. Once located their victims are generally caught in a couple of bounds stoats may wrap their bodies around large mice or small rats to subdue them. RISKY BUSINESS Rabbits are hunted too but are several times the weight of a stoat and Muntjac deer in winter. Stoats hunt rabbits stealthily to reduce the risk of injuring themselves. NEXT MONTH dangerous to tackle. Stoats approach rabbits cautiously stopping and standing up on their hind legs to judge distances. They use cover to get close and judge their final dash carefully to ensure that they maximise the surprise to the rabbit and minimise the chance of injury to themselves. I COVERUP Once they have made a kill stoats quickly drag larger prey into cover to avoid attracting the attention of other predators. The remains of the carcass will be cached for future use either under dense vegetation or loosely buried under a log or rock. Weather watch November HOW TO RECOGNISE RADIATION FOG ROSS REYNOLDS The University of Reading meteorologist on howto