26 



THE MUSKRAT. 



sales for 1908 and 1909 showed still further rise in prices, which 

 were again advanced in the January and March sales of 1910. The 

 total London sales for 1908 were 3,806,000 ; for 1909, 3,771,000. Fig. 3 

 shows the variation in the numbers of muskrat skins sold in London, 

 1763 to 1909.« 



Information from dealers in raw furs in the Chesapeake region 

 indicates that the supply of muskrat furs has been reasonably steady 

 in spite of the prevailing high prices. Baltimore buyers paid 35 

 cents each for brow^n and 45 cents for black, ungraded, during the 

 season of 1909. New York buyers offered higher prices, but the 

 furs are graded in that market. On January 22, 1910, Baltimore 

 buyers were paying 65 cents for brown and 70 cents for black skins, 

 ungraded. Trade quotations in The Trapper's World for February, 

 1910, list No. 1 black muskrat skins at $1 each. Prices are, of 

 course, based on returns from the London auctions and must be low 

 enought to permit a reasonable profit to dealers. 



In order to dispose of furs to advantage, trappers should keep in- 

 formed as to market values. Usually they can realize fair returns 

 by selling to local buyers and at the same time run but slight risk of 

 having the pelts graded too low. There has been much complaint 

 of the practice of dealers in sending out circulars offering high 

 prices for furs to induce shipments. Upon receipt of consignments, 

 however, the furs are so much undergraded that the returns are far 

 less than could have been realized in the local market. 



Trapping the Muskrat. 



Muskrats are not suspicious and are easily trapped. They take 

 any suitable bait readily, especially in winter and early spring, when 

 green food is scarce. The majority of those captured in the ordinary 

 steel trap are caught by the front leg. A strong trap breaks the leg 

 bone and in struggling the animal is apt to tear loose, leaving a foot, 

 or part of it, in the trap. For this reason the traps should be set so 

 that the captives will quickly drown. 



The best baits for muskrat are carrots, sweet apples, parsnips, 

 turnips, or pieces of squash. Many trappers use scent to attract the 

 animals, but it is doubtful if the smell of musk or of any of the oils, 

 as anise or rhodium, has advantages over the natural odor of the 

 baits named. 



Most muskrat trappers use the ordinary steel trap (No. 1). The 

 manner of setting it depends upon the situation, and the skill of the 

 trapper is best displayed in selecting this. Muskrat trails may be 

 found along the banks of all streams and ponds which they inhabit, 



" Statistics are taken from Poland's " Fur-Bearing Animals" and from " Fur 

 Trade Review," 1891 to 1909. 

 396 



