ExploreMammals

Muskrat

Name: Muskrat video
Description: Muskrats are furry animals that love to live near water. They are great swimmers and build cozy homes called lodges using plants and mud.

Ondatra zibethicus

Muskrats are furry animals that love to live near water. They are great swimmers and build cozy homes called lodges using plants and mud.

Habitat: Wetlands

Appearance

The Muskrat has a stocky, brownish-red body with a lighter belly and small ears. Its most distinctive features are its long, flattened, and nearly hairless tail, and its partially webbed hind feet for swimming.

KingdomAnimaliaPhylumChordataClassMammaliaOrderRodentiaFamilyCricetidaeGenusOndatra

Muskrat

Interesting facts

Baby muskrats, called 'kits,' are born blind and hairless but grow incredibly fast to survive!

Muskrats are so agile underwater, they can even swim backward to escape predators!

Muskrats build dome-shaped homes called 'lodges' from mud and plants, looking like mini beaver dams!

Their powerful incisor teeth never stop growing, which means they must constantly chew to keep them short!

Special abilities

Muskrat can hold its breath for up to 17 minutes, allowing it to forage for food and escape predators underwater.

Muskrat has partially webbed hind feet and a flat, rudder-like tail that help them swim quickly and steer efficiently.

Muskrat has dense, oily fur that keeps it warm and dry in icy water, which helps them survive cold climates.

Muskrat can close its lips behind its front teeth, allowing them to gnaw on plants underwater without swallowing water.

Measurements & details

Length: 45-65 cm
Weight: 0.6-2 kg
Lifespan: 3-4 years
Top Speed: 5 km/h
Litter Size: 4-8
Gestation: 28-30 days

Watch

YouTube

Diet & Feeding

Muskrats primarily munch on aquatic plants but also enjoy small critters like mussels and crayfish.

Primary Foods

Cattails
Water lilies
Sedges
Mussels
Crayfish
Small fish

Foraging Method

Foraging

Ecological connections

eaten by

American Mink

Neogale vison

A primary predator of muskrats near water.

eaten by

Great Horned Owl

Bubo virginianus

Owls often snatch muskrats from the land or water's edge.

eaten by

Coyote

Canis latrans

Coyotes hunt muskrats, especially when they are on land.

eats

Broadleaf Cattail

Typha latifolia

Muskrats consume the roots and stems of this common plant.

eats

Giant Floater

Anodonta grandis

Muskrats crack open mussels they find at the bottom.

Traits

Furry

Furry describes animals possessing a dense covering of soft hair or fur.

Webbed Feet

Characterized by having toes connected by a membrane, typically aiding in swimming.

Social

Social animals live in organized groups, cooperating for survival benefits such as foraging, defense, and raising offspring.

Herbivorous

This trait characterizes organisms whose diet consists entirely or primarily of plant material.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.