The Muskrat 85 



Two years later another burrow in the same vicinity 

 yielded a like amount. 



When he can obtain it, the principal animal food 

 of the muskrat is the fresh water mussel. I have 

 found large heaps of these empty shells near the 

 entrance of a muskrat home. The muskrat is also 

 said to feed to some extent upon fish, especially upon 

 those fish which half conceal themselves in the mud, 

 as the carp, sucker, and catfish. It is also probable 

 that during severe winters, when food is scarce, they 

 devour one another. I am certain that if a muskrat 

 is caught in a trap and remains there for some time, 

 its companions will often turn upon it and devour it. 

 This cannibalism is not peculiar to the muskrat family, 

 for it exists among the wolves and other wild animals, 

 and to some extent among the domesticated ones. 



In certain parts of the country large numbers of 

 muskrats are destroyed annually, not for their fur 

 alone; but to prevent their becoming so numerous 

 as to cause damage by making holes in the mill- 

 dams, embankments, or ditches that happen to be 

 inhabited by them. 



The manner of hunting muskrats is about the same 

 throughout their range. In the Northern States the 

 trapping season begins about the middle of October, 

 and the fur continues good until the following April. 



