Hey, Bob, which Pliny described domesticated ferrets?  I've been under
the impression that it was Pliny the Younger (the nephew of Pliny the
Elder if memory serves) and also the first person to accurately describe
pyroclastic flow (for those here who are interested in volcanology).
Was it?
 
I have found that Pliny the Younger apparently referred to them (calling
Sura an "Old Ferret") linking to
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/results
 
Erica mentions Pliny the Elder having done written of ferrets:
http://www.cypresskeep.com/Ferretfiles/Domestic-FUSA.htm
 
In http://www.weaselwords.com/pages/art028.asp Dr. Susan Brown gives a
time frame
>Pliny in AD 23-79
 
I keep finding mentions, some of Pliny the Younger, some of Pliny the
Elder, most just "Pliny" which are virtually identical.  What makes it
more confusing is that only one of Pliny the Elder's works survived
(luckily the right topic) but reference by Pliny the Younger to many of
the works of Pliny the Elder have survived.
 
Okay, from
http://www.bookrags.com/biography/pliny-the-elder/
>Name:  Pliny the Elder
>Birth Date:  c. 23
>Death Date:  79
>Pliny the Elder (23-79) was a Roman encyclopedist.  His greatest and
>only surviving work, the Natural History, has been called one of the
>most influential books ever written in Latin.
 
whereas Pliny the Younger:
http://www.bookrags.com/biography/pliny-the-younger/
sounds less likely
 
So, am I correct in assuming that my impression was incorrect and that
Pliny the Elder was the one who described them, and that Pliny the
Younger also did so, but perhaps more as in the way of his letter to
Sura, and in reference to his uncle's work?  Did both do something worth
scholarly mention in relation to ferrets?  Either one could have referred
to Julius Caesar transporting them for use in areas with many rabbits.
 
--Sukie
"Pray for the dead, but fight like hell for the living"
--Mother Jones
[Posted in FML issue 4769]