“He’s checking us out!”
Last month, while skiing a snowy mountain trail, Kerwyn Jones and a friend suddenly realized they were being watched.
Popping up from the thick blanket of surrounding snow, the pair spotted a little face — blending in nearly perfectly with the wintry landscape.
“Look at that thing!” Jones said with astonishment.
And, it turns out, the little animal was equally surprised to see them.
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What Jones initially identifies as “one of those little snow mouses” appears to actually be a white mountain ermine (also known as a stoat) — a species of weasel native to North America. Though their fur is brown in warmer months, the ermine’s coat changes in winter to one of snowy white.
That fact makes them quite hard to detect. Jones and his friend had lucked out.
“[They’re] rarely ever seen in the wild,” Jones wrote.
Though the serene landscape of freshly fallen snow may often seem quiet and still, Jones’ serendipitous encounter proves there’s much more than meets the eye. After all, when it comes to winter, there are more than a few animals like ermines who know just how to blend in.
