Photo: The great hunter: an ermine near Arctic Bay

The great hunter: an ermine peeks over the rocks just outside of Arctic Bay. Photographer Clare Kines captured the furry mammal in its brown, summer coat on July 29 at Victor Bay. According to the Canadian Museum of Nature, ermine are active mostly at night, hunting for their favourite food: mice and lemmings. “They have been known to clamber up a person’s clothing to reach food,” the museum’s website says, and even prey on small hares, pikas, porcupines, rats and fish. (PHOTO BY CLARE KINES)