Stoat and weasel in the camera box

The camera box in the garden is generally not baited but relies on the animals' curiosity to tempt them in.  It also attracts lots of mice, voles and shrews and so will smell of prey.  Weasels are usually happy to explore the box but stoats are rare visitors.  The female stoat who has been hanging around the garden for a while recently made two visits to the box.

There were also two very brief sightings of a weasel running through so I was tempted to put in a mouse from a trap in the roof, hoping the weasel might take it.  But the stoat got there first.  It was interesting that, having found it, the stoat checked the coast was clear before taking the mouse away, something that weasels do regularly.  Unfortunately the camera was in between its maximum 20s night-time recordings when the stoat came back to pick up the mouse.  The banging in the background is the sound of fireworks.

I put in another mouse and this time there was a rare night-time visit from a weasel but it didn't take the mouse, probably because it was still frozen.

Before the weasel had time to change its mind the stoat was there early the next morning and did take the mouse.  It was back six minutes later to check it hadn't missed another one.

The next bait was a bank vole and this was taken by the weasel.  Again she checked the coast was clear before running off with her prize.

I have plenty more mice in the freezer so it will be interesting to see if these two become regulars.