Whoever is running the National Parks Service social media accounts deserves a raise. They’re constantly writing funny posts that draw massive amounts of engagement.
The Tweet below, which has been viewed over 7 million times, pokes fun at moronic tourists (otherwise known as tourons) who don’t understand appropriate boundaries around wildlife.
Check it out:
Did you know if you hold an ermine up to your ear, you can hear what it’s like to be attacked by an ermine? pic.twitter.com/CS20M9XDjh
— National Park Service (@NatlParkService) February 1, 2023
Funny, right? They made me click a thread about a rodent I’ve never heard of.
That’s a internet win if I do say so myself.
Check out the remaining Tweets about Ermine from the thread:
Blending in! It has a dark brown coat with a white underside during summer but molts to all white with a black-tipped tail during winter. pic.twitter.com/5ofR3LYgXP
— National Park Service (@NatlParkService) February 1, 2023
Here’s more information about the Ermine population in Alaska from the Alaska Wildlife Alliance:
“The ermine looks a lot like a typical weasel, with its long body, short legs, and long neck. It’s known as the short-tailed weasel because it has a much shorter tail than its longer tailed cousin, which is aptly named – you guessed it- the long-tailed weasel.
They look nearly identical, with both species having reddish-brown fur on top of a white underbelly in the summer and stark white fur in the winter. They make this change so they can disappear in the snow, which makes it much easier to both hunt prey and avoid predators. The tip of their tail will remain a dark black during all seasons.
Ermine are a bit smaller than the longer tailed cousins, coming in at less than a pound and around 13 inches in length. Their tails are around a third of that length and actually aren’t that short compared to their own bodies. Females tend to be around 50% smaller than males, and they use that size to enter the homes of small prey.”