4 



FARMERS* BULLETIN 869. 



DESCRIPTION. 



The muskrat (see illustration on title page) is a rodent which when 

 full grown is about four times as large as the ordinary brown rat. 

 It has a blunt muzzle, a short and hardly noticeable neck, and a stout 

 body. The tail is characteristic, about two-thirds as long as the 

 head and body, compressed laterally, and tapering to a rather acute 

 point ; the thinly scattered hairs on the tail do not conceal the small 

 but distinctly marked scales. The eyes 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, especially the front ones, and the feet are stout 

 and provided with rather ,long claws. The hind feet are webbed 

 slightly and so formed that they can be turned edgewise Avhen 

 carried forward while the animal is swimming. 



Except the beaver no inland fur-bearing mammal of the United 

 States leads a more aquatic life than the muskrat. Its characters 

 especially adapt it to the water. Besides having feet specialized for 

 swimming, 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 underfur is exceedingly dense. The more common 

 color of the muskrat is dark umber brown, the exact shade depending 

 upon the season and the locality. 



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 elsewhere. They are sold 

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

 color. The form 1 from which most of the black skins are derived 

 ranges chiefly in the tidewater region of the Atlantic coast from 

 New Jersey to North Carolina. 



The muskrat derives its name from the musky odor given off by 

 certain glands. The odor pervades the entire skin to some extent, 

 particularly in summer. Musquash is the Cree Indian name, and 

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



CLASSIFICATION AND DISTRIBUTION. 



The muskrat 2 is related very closely to the common short-tailed 

 meadow mouse, but is much larger, and has fur, feet, and tail more 

 highly specialized for a life in the water. In addition to size, it 

 differs from the meadow mouse particularly in having a long, nar- 

 row, rudderlike tail, which is nearly naked, about as long as the body 

 without the head, and thickest along the middle line. 



1 Fiber zibethicus macrodon. 



2 Fiber zibethicus, subspecies, 



