Behavior
The behavior of lemmings is much the same as that of many other rodents which have periodic population booms and then disperse in all directions, seeking the food and shelter their natural habitats cannot provide. The Norway lemming and brown lemming are two of the few vertebrates who reproduce so quickly, their population fluctuations are chaotic, rather than following linear growth to a carrying capacity or regular oscillations. It is unknown why lemming populations fluctuate with such variance roughly every four years, before plummeting to near extinction. Lemming behavior and appearance are markedly different from many other rodents, which are inconspicuously colored and try to conceal themselves from their predators. Lemmings, on the contrary, are conspicuously colored, and behave aggressively towards predators and even human observers. The lemming defense system is thought to be based on aposematism (warning display).
For many years, the population of lemmings was believed to change with the population cycle, but now some evidence suggests their predators' populations, particularly the stoat, may be more closely involved in changing the lemming population.
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