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Originally Posted by The Retro Kat
I want to but one of those cats youve been talking about, they look cute. I love kitties.
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I hope you aren't serious.
Ermine (
Mustela Ermina)
Kits
The ermine, like the least weasel, turns white in the winter, and brown in the summer. It is also sometimes referred to as a stoat (pronounced "stout") although this word is usually reserved for when it is in it's summer coat. They are both bold and vicious and have been known to clamber up people's clothing for food.
"As the female ermine lopes off, her long, thin body humps in the middle like a caterpillar's. Suddenly she dives into the soft snow, leaving only a neat, round hole behind. A few yards beyond, her head pops up through the snow. It swivels like a periscope on a long, snaky neck, then ducks into the snow again.
Most of the ermine's prey are small rodents that live beneath the snow in winter. To hunt them effectively, she must go where they go: into their runways, tunnels, and burrows. Shes the perfect size for hunting meadow voles, as her body diameter is almost exactly the same as the voles. Other vole species are also eaten, including brown and collared lemmings." (
http://www.renres.gov.yk.ca/wildlife/weasel.html)
Their soft white skins are used to make fur coats, trimming, stoles, and neck pieces.
During the middle ages, ermine fur was considered a symbol of royalty, and was often worn by rulers. It ranges through the north of North America and Eurasia.
The ermine was once considered a symbol of virginity and purity because of it's perfect white coat, and legend had it that it would rather die than get dirty.
Queen Elizabeth I, pictured with an ermine (probably a pet ferret in real life).