Written By Ken Hulsey
By now, I’m sure you’ve heard the sad tale of the Arctic rodents known for their reputation for mass suicides, supposedly leaping off cliffs to their doom. It’s a confusing sight—adorable little creatures engaging in a life-or-death game of follow-the-leader to their demise. This makes one wonder why these cute little critters would behave in such a way and why a lemming would lead its kin off a cliff in the first place. Such behavior goes against the natural survival instinct that exists in all living beings, including humans. So, what is it about lemmings that leads to this idea of mass suicide?
The truth is, while lemmings do experience periodic mass migration due to overpopulation and a lack of resources, they do not engage in mass suicide by jumping off cliffs. So, where did this misconception come from? It turns out that pop culture has perpetuated this notion, amplified by some old magazine articles, a popular video game series in the early '90s, and some diabolical filmmakers at Disney.
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Let me explain. The poor lemming has faced a significant amount of bad press over the years, along with some strange folklore and pseudoscience. In the 1530s, a Bavarian geographer named Jacob Ziegler published a report claiming that lemmings magically and spontaneously generated in the clouds, falling to Earth like rain in the spring and mysteriously returning to the heavens in winter. One has to wonder what Ziegler had been drinking! It was also popularly believed at the time that when lemmings got angry, they would turn red and explode—a really good reason to stay on the good side of a lemming!
Who wants a blown-up lemming on their conscience!
As for the origin of the suicide behavior myth, most researchers trace it back to a 1877 article in Popular Science Magazine. The author observed lemmings plunging into the water (which they can swim, you know) and assumed they were attempting to end it all. It was also suggested that they were searching for the mythical undersea kingdom of Lemuria. Of course, Lemuria doesn't exist, so it was deemed suicide, right?
The modern perpetuation of this myth can be credited to a Disney documentary from 1958 called *White Wilderness*. In one particularly famous sequence, the film depicts lemmings leaping off a cliff en masse, falling to their deaths in the water below. It was a dramatic scene that left a lasting impression on viewers. The unfortunate truth? The entire event was staged by the filmmakers. Unable to find any lemmings willing to march off a cliff, they loaded a truck with lemmings and pushed them off the cliff for the shot. It certainly makes one question how much of the content in shows like *Wild Kingdom* was staged in such a manner.
Additionally, there were popular video games from the '90s produced by Sega, where players controlled the leader of a group of lemmings, trying to lead them to safety while avoiding pitfalls, enemies, and nearby cliffs. Interestingly, Sega decided that cute little furry creatures wouldn't sell well, so they created characters that somewhat resembled Kling and Klang from *H.R. Pufnstuf*. I have to admit that I spent far too much time at work playing *Lemmings* on my PC instead of doing my actual job—maybe that’s why I never got a raise and ended up getting fired!
In reality, the myth of the lemming reflects more about human behavior than about the rodents themselves. A person who blindly follows a leader and does whatever they’re told without question is often referred to as a lemming. Unfortunately, we see far too many people in the world today who fit this description. Many blindly follow politicians, political trends, religions, and fads. Just because my neighbor voted a certain way, I feel compelled to do the same. Just because Judy started wearing a paperclip in her nose, I might feel I need to do that too—I wouldn’t want to look like a weirdo without a paperclip in my nose! Yes, we are all lemmings to some degree. Well, except for the actual lemming; they aren’t anything like us at all.
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