This has been your daily Moment of Science, taking the new band name of the Ferocious Lemming. Keep all that in mind next time you call someone a lemming. This animal BASE jumps without a parachute, swims long distances for survival, and plays mind games that make a cat go “woah, dude, be cool.” ![]() A lemming may not be able to fuck up a cat, but it’ll threaten one into thinking it can. Though it’s hunted as prey, the Norwegian lemming has the type of vibrant fur colors and patterns that screams to predators, “not today, motherfucker.” It’s been described by the BBC as a “bloodthirsty hairy berserker,” will freak the fuck out when it feels threatened by encroaching humans, and will attack other small and medium sized animals. I wonder if Disney gave me any other unrealistic expectations. Or that they weren’t even in the country- or continent- where that species lived. Or that they weren’t even using the species of lemming known for taking to the water. Or that they brought the lemmings to the top of a cliff and pushed them. You didn’t see that Disney paid locals $1 per lemming. They portrayed a rather upsetting scene of lemmings hurtling themselves off a cliff, ostensibly by their own choice, to their deaths. Well, they presented a thing they called a documentary, because documentaries aren’t supposed to be works of fantasy. They filmed a documentary called White Wilderness. But it’s a lot harder to stage footage of tossing hundreds of lemmings into the water reverse D-Day style and hope to capture an expression of ennui for the camera from the rodent.īecause that’s, give or take, exactly how Disney birthed the lemming-cliff-diving-suicide legend. ![]() ![]() Though there have been stories of lemmings seemingly falling from the skies for centuries, sometimes lemmings just scurry into the water on the shore. The more likely explanation is that their existence runs in regular cycles of population boom followed by sharp reduction courtesy of several factors, including predators like the arctic fox, red fox, and snowy owl. Their total numbers grow immensely through breeding season, which may have contributed to the population control idea. To be fair, not all of them survive the journey, and the occasional drowned lemming granted the myth undue credibility. When they venture out seeking more land and food, something like a measly body of water isn’t enough to stand in the way of the mighty lemming. This is the result of being such successful breeders that they need more resources. It turns out that they’re not jumping to put an end to their adorable little lemming existence. The problem with this idea? The little fuckers are great swimmers. Theories popped up over the years that have stuck, a popular one being that they go cliff diving as a method of population control. It’s true, giant herds of Norwegian lemmings occasionally go all “Ma, look I’m gonna do a cannonball” off the side of a cliff, much to the confusion of locals. Today’s Moment of Science… the myth of suicidal lemmings. ![]() Ready to find out one more way that Disney fucked up your ideas about reality? We call people ‘lemmings’ as an insult, under a belief that these critters are witless followers, allowing groupthink to guide them right off the edge to a watery grave. It’s left us with many assumptions about the tiny rodent. image source: Įvery once in a while, Norwegian lemmings make a frenzied ascent up a steep cliff only to ritualistically offer themselves up as sacrifices to Davy Jones. A Norwegian lemming in its natural habitat- angry af.
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