The Norwegian Lemming Likes To 'Stand Out': Its Coat Colors Warn Predators To Stay Away

Some lemmings have to stand out from the crowd for survival. In this case, it's the Norwegian lemming (Lemmus lemmus)--a boldly colored vertebrate that can be found in parts of northern Finland, Norway, Sweden and the Kola peninsula in Russia.

Researchers have found that this small creature that is active both day and night with short rest periods in between does not like to get into fights. In fact, it would rather warn off predators conspicuous, bold colors and loud barks than get involved at all. 

The study authors conducted five field tests to examine the animal's remarkable traits, which can be ascribed to aposematism or using colors and other methods to warn off predators and more commonly found in frogs, insects or snakes.

The experiments revealed varying results. For instance, eighteen observers in one of the experiments found it easier to spot Norwegian lemmings in their natural habitat when compared to their main rodent neighbor, the grey-sided vole. Another case showed that only one brown lemming out of 39 examples gave out a predatory warning call when a human was too close. However, this was not the case for Norwegian lemmings. Thirty-six out of 110 cases involved adult and small juvenile Norwegian lemmings calling out when humans came within five feet of the creature. Shortly after, they ran for shelter, taking refuge unobserved in their natural habitat.

Researchers note how the yellow, white and black colors of the creature make it easily distinguishable from others around and give off a warning color combination silently to nearby animals. In other words, you don't want to mess with this lemming. 

"The Norwegian lemming combines acoustics with visual conspicuousness, probably to reduce its risk of becoming prey," Malte Andersson at the University of Göteborg in Sweden, said in a news release. He believes that such aposematism could help explain why the long-distance movements of Norwegian lemmings are so conspicuous. Only future research will tell. 

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 

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