Playful stoat cubs, acrylic painting by Robert E Fuller
I have a fantastic video clip of a stoat examining the ice on the pond in my garden. It's incredible to watch the stoat as it encounters the thin film of ice on the water. This young male is just a year old so it could possibly be the first time it has come across ice. Watch the video link below to see how it pauses as it lowers its head to drink in the pond and then, incredibly, slips its whole head under the ice to take a look at it from underneath!
It doesn't take long before the stoat has figured out that it can actually walk across the pond.Watch how the animal slips over the thin ice. What balance! It's not long before it can skate with confidence.
As a wildlife artist I have positioned surveillance cameras throughout my garden so that I look into the secret world of wildlife. Moments like this make up the whole story of the animals that I pose and I use this research to inform my final paintings. Take a look at my latest stoat studies.
