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OUR MOST IMPORTANT FUR BEARER. 
HE muskrat has not yet been added to the 
collections of the Aquarium, but being an 
aquatic animal of convenient size there is no 
reason why it should not have a place there. 
It is not its size nor the value of its pelt, but 
its sheer abundance which makes the muskrat 
our most important fur bearer; it predominates 
in the fur trade not by quality but by quantity. 
A report on furs sold by Lampson & Co., of 
London, during the year 1909, states that they 
handled during the year, 2,892,000 skins of 
“musquash,” which is the fur trade name for the 
muskrat. From publications of the United 
States Fisheries Bureau and from other sources. 
it appears that the annual yield of muskrat skins 
is considerably in excess of five millions, about 
one-quarter of the catch being made in Canada 
where it is generally known by the Indian name 
“musquash.” 
The yield may in fact exceed six millions, as 
recent advices from Louisiana indicate a catch 
for that state of probably more than a million 
skins during the year. 
The muskrat, (Liber zibethicus), is a North 
American animal, abundant in nearly all marshy 
and well-watered regions from Virginia and the 
Mississippi Valley, northward to Labrador and 
Alaska. Although it bears one of the cheapest 
pelts, its great abundance makes it very impor- 
tant—exceeding any other species by more than 
a million skins. 
It is principally used for imitating fur seal, 
the hair being plucked which exposes the soft 
under fur, but it does not wear as well, the fur 
having a tendency to become matted down. The 
so-called “electric seal” of the fur trade is made 
of muskrat skins. “‘Irench seal” is another name 
applied to the muskrat counterfeit. It is often 
dyed to imitate other furs of a higher price and 
has long been in great demand for coat linings 
and trimmings. 
Judging from the prices of the Lampson sales 
catalogue, the average value in the market ap- 
pears to be less than fifty cents, but the price 
received by trappers in the United States would 
probably range from ten to twenty cents apiece. 
Skins from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, 
Maine, New York, Michigan and Wisconsin 
bring a higher price. Black skins which are 
quite common are more valuable than those of 
the normal brown color. 
The muskrat flourishes quite as well in the 
great salt marshes of the Atlantic Coast, as it 
does in fresh water marshes in the interior. A 
large proportion of the United States catch is 
made in New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. 
ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN. 
Recent inquiries by the United States Bureau of 
Biology show that muskrat trapping is a very 
important industry in this region, Dorchester 
County, Maryland, alone producing about 250,- 
000 skins in 1909. Along the eastern shore of 
Maryland the marshes are regularly leased for 
such trapping. 
The muskrat is a cleanly animal and a vege- 
table feeder, subsisting largely on roots of water 
plants such as lilies and calamus. It is not 
known to consume much animal food except 
fresh water mussels. During canoe trips on the 
upper Delaware River I found numerous small 
heaps of mussel shells on the rocks along the 
shore, showing where the muskrats had been 
feeding. On one evening I observed a group of 
muskrats diving persistently in shallow water 
near the shore and on the following morning 
found there a large bed of fresh water mussels. 
In most localities where the muskrat is taken 
in abundance, the flesh is used extensively for 
food. 
It is captured chiefly by means of steel traps. 
Spears are used to a considerable extent, being 
driven through the tops of their mound-like 
houses which may be found all about the 
marshes. Many are taken by shooting but this 
injures the value of the skin. 
It is a very prolific animal, breeding several 
times a year and having from three to twelve at 
a litter, which accounts for its wonderful abund- 
ance. The aquatic and nocturnal habits as well 
as the fecundity of the muskrat serve to protect 
it. Man is its principal enemy, but it is preyed 
upon to some extent by minks, otters and owls. 
In some states where its capture is important, it 
is protected by law for a portion of the year. 
It is rather abundant in the lower courses of 
the Yukon, Kuskokwim and other Alaskan rivers 
and I have seen muskrats in the Kowak River 
above the Arctic Circle. The natives use the 
skin to some extent for clothing. 
Although restricted to North America the im- 
portance of the muskrat to the fur trade should 
warrant its introduction into the marsh lands of 
other northern countries especially Europe, 
where the sale of muskrat skins is very great. 
In most localities it is harmless and unobjection- 
able, but it causes some loss to real estate by bur- 
rowing in the banks of streams and is quite 
troublesome for this reason along the banks of 
canals. Its introduction into Holland would not 
be appropriate. 
The writer has recommended its introduction 
into the fresh water lakes of the Pribilof Islands 
where there are 300 resident natives of Alaska 
employed in the taking of fur seals. If there 
were muskrats on the islands, their capture 
