New Hampshire Critters, Part 1

Today in our exploration of New Hampshire critters, we'll take a look at one of the state's highest profile critters -- and no, not moose. This one is strangely warm and fuzzy, but definitely lacking in the huggable department. The Fisher Cat is a native New Englander (though it lives all across the northern U.S. and Canada), and every bit as ornery as the most ornery Yankee -- which is probably why it feels right at home in New Hampshire. Clearly, whoever named it was either blind, a liar or just plain drunk; despite its name, it is not at all related to cats, and it doesn't really eat fish either. The Fisher Cat is essentially a weasel on steroids, a mink with a 'tude. (It was actually heavily hunted by the French for their fur in the 17th century, which may explain the Fisher Cat's well-noted poor sense of humor.) Indeed, it is infamous for hunting cats and even smaller dogs. Seriously; in wooded areas, it's not a good idea to leave Boopsie outside in the yard unattended... In fact, there've been documented cases of whole families in isolated farm houses being eaten alive by these things, with neighbors later discovering only gnawed body parts and shredded clothing. OK, I made that last bit up, but a Fisher Cat adult male grows to more than a yard in length, so you definitely will need more than a fly swatter if you find yourself face to face with one. Besides occasionally munching on your pets, they have a reputation for getting on humans' nerves another way: Fisher Cats are infamous for, in the early morning hours, making a long, trailing screeching noise that sounds like someone putting a human baby in a blender. My guess is the buggers do that on purpose after watching the hair stand up on the back of our necks a few times, having heard the sound myself a few occasions while getting the car ready for work at dawn. Of course, for all I know, it may have just been one of my neighbors putting a baby in the blender; perhaps I am unfairly casting aspersions on Fisher Cats. Anyway, ornery Yankees can't help but fall in love with a critter as ill-tempered as themselves, and so the local minor league baseball team is affectionately named the Fisher Cats. So there you have it; in a state made of granite, you get a critter that will probably seldom be seen in your local petting zoo.