THE MUSKRAT. 



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conceal the small but distinctly marked scales. The e^^es are small, 

 black, and beady. The ears are short, covered with hairs, and in 

 winter almost wholly concealed in the fur. The incisors are large 

 and without grooves. The legs are short, expecially the front ones, 

 while the feet are stout and provided with rather long claws. The 

 hind feet are slightly webbed and so formed that they can be turned 

 edgewise when carried forward while the animal is swimming. 



Except the beaver, none of our inland fur-bearing mammals leads 

 a more aquatic life than the muskrat. Its characters especially adapt 

 it to the water. Besides having feet specialized for SAvinnning, it has 

 a tail which serves as an efficient rudder and fur which is practically 

 waterproof. The long overhairs are close and glossy, and the under- 

 fur is exceedingly dense. The more common color of the muskrat is 

 dark umber brown, the exact shade differing with the season and the 

 localit}^ 



Fur dealers recognize only one variety of the muskrat differing 

 from the common color. This variety consists of the dark, some- 

 times almost black, skins collected in the Chesapeake and Delaware 

 regions and in more limited numbers elscAvhere. They are sold 

 as " black muskrat,'' and command a higher price than the ordinary 

 color. The species from which most of the black skins are derived 

 is Fiber macrodon^ which ranges chiefly in the tidcAvater region of 

 the Atlantic coast from New Jersey to North Carolina. 



The muskrat derives its name from the musky odor given off 

 chiefly by its large perineal glands. The odor pervades the entire 

 skin to some extent,- particularly in summer. The name musquash, 

 used by Richardson for this animal, is the Cree Indian name, and 

 has the authority of long use, especially among fur dealers. 



GENERAL HABITS. 



While muskrats are chiefly nocturnal, they are much more active 

 by day than many suppose. Where seldom disturbed, they may often 

 be seen at work in bright sunlight, especially when building winter 

 houses. These structures, though smaller and less strongly built, are 

 in many respects similar to those of the beaver. (Fig. 2.) 



HOUSES AND BURROWS. 



Muskrat houses are composed of rushes, grasses, and roots and 

 stems of other aquatic plants. The structure rests on the bottom of 

 the pond, and is built mainly of the kinds of plants on which the 

 animals feed. These are heaped up without orderly arrangement 

 until the dome-like top rises from 18 inches to 2 or 3 feet above the 

 w^ater. The mud sometimes seen on the outside of muskrat houses 



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