Charming Tiny Visitor - From My Window

Recently I was away from home and missed an unusual visitor to our patio.  Mike was lucky enough to see and photograph it though, and showed me the picture he was able to take through the patio door.  Rounded teddy bear ears, snow white long, lanky body, short legs and coal black eyes and nose identified the trespasser as an ermine, also known as a short-tailed weasel and stoat.  Its scientific name is “Mustela erminea” identifying them as members of the family that includes badgers, pine martens, otters, fishers and wolverines.

We’ve seen photos of these enchanting little bandits once in a while in winter trail cam pictures, but I can’t remember seeing any in their summer brown coat.  Either way, they are well-camouflaged regardless of the season from their predators:  owls, hawks, and foxes are among those who enjoy a meal of this member of the weasel family.  They are primarily nocturnal hunters, and are one of North America’s smallest carnivores at 5-12 total inches long, and weigh less than a pound.  They use their incredible sense of hearing to locate prey in burrows and under snow; but have poor vision when looking at stationary objects, although they see slight motions well.

They prey on small rodents, especially shrews and mice; they will also eat eggs, frogs, and birds.  Some people believe they kill chickens, although given their small size, that’s unlikely.  Their peculiar body shape shows their biological investment in being able to enter small tunnels and burrows after below-ground prey; it made me think of the convergent evolution in a totally separate species:  the dachshund, whose elongated body and short legs were selectively bred for entering animal burrows and dragging out the prey.

Ermine are relatively common in Northern Wisconsin, although I’ve never seen them outside zoos until we moved to our spot here.

One of the most fascinating things about them to me is that they were (and maybe still are) prized for their fur.  It seems like taking the fur from an animal weighing less than a pound would be a waste of time, as tiny as the resulting pelt would be.  The pelts were historically used in royal robes in Europe; prized for their fineness and pure color.  During the reign of one royal monarch in England, a law limited the wearing of ermine to royalty.  (For the record, I dislike everything about fur trapping.  I know others feel differently, but taking the family dog, on family property, out of an illegally-set leghold trap when I was a child left an indelible impression of great suffering on me.)

I didn’t know much about ermine diets when the visitor showed up on the patio near the bird feeder very early one morning.  I guessed it might be after birds, but having discovered a  few nights later, after it was pointed out to me by three transfixed house cats that the patio is a hangout for mice at night, I know that mice are what probably attracted it.  (It is very entertaining to watch three cats frustrated by the sight of five or six seed-hunting mice, ping-ponging in random directions on the patio at mouse warp speed; almost like a primitive video game.)

It was because of a dog, however, that the ermine was detected.  That morning Wolfgang got extremely “pupset” well before dawn, pacing around the patio doors and alerting.  Wolf is a visual hunter, with excellent eyesight.  We never doubt his alerts; sometimes he sees things we never can detect even being able to see where he is looking and following his line of sight.  Once daylight came, Mike was able to see the ermine looking through the patio railing; only his black eyes and nose betraying his presence against the snow.

I just love the picture of the little visitor.  We certainly don’t begrudge him a few of “our” mice.  And he’s just so darn cute, almost like a made-up Disney animal, I would have a hard time getting mad even if he was eating birds. 

We are cat and dog fanciers.  A small part of our appreciation for our animal housemates is they point out things all the time that we’d totally miss without them helping us out.  This time Wolf gave us the treasured memory and the opportunity to get a picture of the most charming visitor our patio has ever hosted, bar none.

Passages:  One of the things that make you feel your age is the passage onward of the musicians you loved growing up.  We lost David Crosby last week; a member of several important groups including Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young; and a gifted songwriter, guitarist and singer.  “Wooden Ships” is a favorite of mine after all these years.  I read a biography about him a few years ago; he struggled mightily for decades with substance abuse, and was known to be abrasive and difficult to maintain relationships with.  But he was a musical genius.

You can reach me for commentary, alternative viewpoints or ideas at this e-mail address:  JanieTMartin@gmail.com