Reclusive razor-teethed creature known to carry deadly disease caught on camera
A tiny but vicious creature that is rarely caught on camera and is known to carry deadly diseases has been recorded as it scurried across a Pennsylvania parking lot.
The footage of the unsuspecting white-furred critter was posted on the Back Mountain Community Facebook page on February 25, with a group member asking if it belonged to anyone.
‘Is this creature missing it’s family? Or is it wildlife? It ran right up to me,’ Erin Cerase wrote, explaining she saw the animal by an Italian restaurant called Leggio’s in Dallas, Pennsylvania.
It was definitely not a household pet as Cerase initially thought, but an ermine – also known as a short-tailed weasel or a stoat – characterized as keen, quick and aggressive.
Weasels are relatively common across the state but are not often spotted due to their sly and secretive nature.
Although they typically avoid humans, the wild animals will not hesitate to attack if they feel threatened.
Lieutenant Aaron Morrow, the supervisor at the Northeast Regional Pennsylvania Game Commission office in Back Mountain told WNEP: ‘So the weasels are pretty reclusive.
‘They are observed if you do go out and into the into the wild, into the woods of Pennsylvania. But typically, weasels are going to be spotted along creek beds in marshy locations.’
A tiny but vicious creature that is rarely caught on camera and is known to carry deadly diseases was recorded as it scurried across a Pennsylvania parking lot
Morrow speculated the short-tailed weasel found itself in the parking lot because there is a stream close by.
Ermines only tend to weigh two to five ounces and are quite ‘cute,’ as one Facebook user described, but experts warn against getting too close.
‘And like any wild animal, they’re going to try to get away from you. if you try to touch them, you risk of being scratched, you risk of being bitten,’ Marrow told WNEP.
‘That’s something that we don’t want to expose anymore from the public to be bitten by a wild animal.’
Think Wild, a wildlife hospital and conservation center based in Oregon, urgently explained that no one should go near any mustelids, which are otters, badgers, fishers, wolverines, minks, martens and weasels.
‘DO NOT attempt to handle mustelids – they are rabies vector species and can carry and transfer rabies without exhibiting symptoms!’ the organization wrote.
Described as ‘quick, agile and extremely effective predators with very sharp teeth’ by UC Davis, weasels can carry rabies, salmonella and campylobacter.
Rabies is ‘almost invariably fatal’ and causes muscle spasm, intense reactions to external stimuli and convulsions.
Salmonella poisoning – salmonellosis – can cause diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fever, chills and cramping.
The bacteria can lead to meningitis and encephalitis, which is brain inflammation, if it enters one’s central nervous system.
Campylobacteriosis can causes diarrhea, stomach pain, fever and pseudoappendicitis, which mimics the effects of appendicitis.
In rare cases, symptoms include blood poisoning called septicemia and arthritis.
The animal was an ermine – also known as a short-tailed weasel or a stoat – and they are known as shy but aggressive
‘So really, any species of wildlife, we urge the public, if you do see it, enjoy it, observe it from a distance, but you definitely do not want to approach it or try to pet it or try to pick it up in any way, shape or form,’ Morrow said.
There are three types of weasels dwelling in Pennsylvania, according to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Long-tailed weasels are the most common and the largest kind. They are found throughout the states.
Least weasels are mostly found in the Allegheny Plateau area of the northwest and southcentral parts of Pennsylvania.
Ermines, most closely related to long-tailed weasels, are the rarest of the bunch and can also be found all over the state.
During the summer, ermines are mostly dark brown with white undersides. But in the winter, they turn white to camouflage with snow.
Aside from snowshoe hares, ermines are the only animals in Pennsylvania that turn totally white for the winter, according to the Commonwealth.
The species’ prey include mice, voles, rats, chipmunks, shrews, rabbits, frogs, lizards, snakes, worms, insects and birds.
‘Ermines consume flesh, fur, feathers and bones of small prey, but generally just the flesh of larger animals,’ the Commonwealth wrote.
Ermines turn white in the winter to blend in with the snow. They are mostly brown during warmer seasons
‘They may lick warm blood from a kill, but do not suck blood. They often kill more than they can immediately eat and cache excess kills.’
The small but mighty stoat evoked strong reactions from the community Facebook group, with many gushing over the creature despite its menacing reputation.
‘Very lucky find!!’ one woman wrote under the video. Another user described ermines as ‘little fellas with big attitudes.’
One particularly excited commenter said: ‘OH MY GOD WE HAVE THESE HERE?? HOW DID I NOT KNOW THIS??!! IT’S SO DANG CUTE!!’
At first, people were torn between the animal being a ferret or a weasel due to the animals’ similar appearances.
‘It’s a wild weasel, same family as ferrets hence the similar look but they are mean little guys,’ someone pointed out.
‘It’s not a ferret as some are saying, it’s an ermine. It’s wild. Leave it alone it will go back to where it lives,’ another added, echoing experts’ sentiments.