The Internet found a new pair of animals to obsess over Monday night. No, not llamas. This time it was a weasel and a flying woodpecker. The weasel was photographed riding on the back of the woodpecker. In other words, it was the perfect viral photo.
Did you ever know that you’re my hero….♪♫ #WeaselPecker (photo by Martin Le-May…it’s real!) pic.twitter.com/5rxmPGvzmK
— Jam (@jamkotenko) March 3, 2015
Photographer Martin Le-May was walking through London‘s Hornchurch Country Park with his wife when the couple chanced upon the extraordinary sight.
No, this is not a Disney animated movie where two creatures strike up an unlikely friendship and proceed to go on adventures together. What drew Le-May and wife to the scene was a terrible noise that sounded like a distress signal.
“Both of us trained our binoculars and it occurred that the woodpecker was unnaturally hopping about like it was treading on a hot surface,” Le-May told ITV News. “Just after I switched from my binoculars to my camera the bird flew across us and slightly in our direction; suddenly it was obvious it had a small mammal on its back and this was a struggle for life.”
While it took some time for Le-May to realize the Internet gold he had in his possession, his memorable snapshot took social media by storm, in the form of hilarious #WeaselPecker memes.
If you’ve heard about the #WeaselPecker, you’ll be pleased to see that someone has added Putin. (h/t to @sklueche) pic.twitter.com/CJ5O4tCG6h
— The Moscow Times (@MoscowTimes) March 3, 2015
And this, people, is why I love the Internet. #WeaselPecker pic.twitter.com/9BZnPrPxBa
— Simon te Brinke (@gramercypark) March 3, 2015
Here Outlanders. Have some #WeaselPecker OUR way. pic.twitter.com/yjfX3xcMmN
— Erika (@Scimommy) March 3, 2015
The #WeaselPecker memes are here… http://t.co/tnGmrLNYxBpic.twitter.com/1buRixqfGn
— The Brightside (@TheBrightsideHP) March 3, 2015
I came in like a #WeaselPecker pic.twitter.com/9pkVciT9t4
— The Poke (@ThePoke) March 3, 2015
H/T Telegraph | Photo by Martin Le-May