Sorry to chime in late...been away.

lemming: from the game Lemmings (you have to lead a group of Lemmings to a goal, as I recall, without them all falling off a cliff). Otherwise who would have heard of this particular animal?

My uncle lived for many years on Baffin Island in the NW Territories of Canada. He told me many stories about the lemmings and their reputed suicide mission each year. Although, they don't really run to the cliffs and jump off in droves, I have always found it a fascinating tale.

In looking for info on lemmings, I discovered (warning--cross threading) the following:

Ode to a Lemming (the Limerick)
by John H. Roberts

There once was a lemming named Sam
Who said "A lemming I am!"
When faced with a cliff,
His body went stiff.
And they scraped him off the ground like spam.

Ode to a Lemming (The Haiku)
by Patrick I. White

Lemming suicide
running off cliffs together
wet, furry lemmings

For more lemming poetry, see The Lemmings Poetry Club: http://homepage.fcgnetworks.net/patrick/lemming.html
[should this be in the animal thread?-e]