

The Fur Animals of Louisiana 303 



impression among those interested in the ranching or farm- 

 ing of muskrats, but the term does apply to color of the 

 pelage on the back of the animal, as the belly fur and hairs 

 are lighter, as they are in other 'rats. From the naming 

 of this animal and the knowledge that they are blackish in 

 pelage there has been quite a movement on in late years 

 to secure specimens from Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware 

 and Virginia so that they will cross with lighter colored 

 species in the West and other sections of the country. 



It must be borne in mind that the securing of a score 

 of such "black" muskrats and the liberation of them in a 

 natural marsh in Louisiana will not mean that a black 

 strain will be created. It might be that the young of the 

 first mating may show a tendency to darken in pelage, but 

 when these, in turn, mate with the native animals, the pre- 

 ponderance will work against the black, and the resultant 

 young from several matings will bear the normal coloration 

 of the native stock. If black 'rats are mated with black 

 'rats in confinement it is doubtless true that black young 

 will be produced, although there is a likelihood that some 

 of the young will prove to be of the normal brown color, 

 and selective breeding will have to be resorted to to keep 

 up the dark strain. See page 382. 



This is mentioned merely to point out the fact that to 

 simply import a few dark 'rats to the Louisiana marshes 

 and turn them loose will not mean we will develop a dark 

 strain here. This holds good for experiments in the West 

 t elsewhere. 



In the article on Maryland conditions that has been 

 quoted Game Warden LeCompte recalls a statement that 

 he made in 1925 that "artificial muskrat farming did not 

 pay due to the fact that the muskrat had never yet shown 

 any person a profit who had attempted to raise the animal 

 in captivity." At that time he referred to the experience 

 of W. A. Gibbs, the well-known trap manufacturer of Ches- 

 ter, Pa., who has large muskrat marshes in Dorchester 

 county, Md. Since 1925, Mr. LeCompte finds that condi- 

 tions have changed and that Mr. Gibbs has been diligently 

 working on a method of propagating muskrats in captivity 

 and that his methods are beginning to show results. 



