Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1894-04-03
POTOMAC MUSKRATS.
QUEER HABITS OF THESE Willy AND
TROUBLESOME LITTLE RODENTS.

TROUBLESOME LITTLE RODENTS.
Their Depredations In Cornfields and Veg
etable Patches-They Are Easily Caught
In Spite of Much Cnnning-Undermined
by Canal Building.
OF all the queer creatures, including
erawfish, turtles, bullfrogs, etc, which
infest the shores of the Potomac near
Washington. atfording sport to small
boys gifted with an appetite for the
chase, not least interesting is the musk
rat.
Muskrats. though timid animals, seek
the neighborhood of human habitations.
They have learned that the presence of
man assures them an abundance of food,
while at the same time their natural
enemies are fewer. Hereabout they
flourish, being to great extent undis-
turbed. They are not destroyed by farm
ers, though in certain regions they are
dreaded enemies of agriculture. Of corn
they are extravagantly fond. They will
eat it at any stage of its growth-th
seed from the ground, the young plant
from the furrow or the roasting ear
from the stalk.
They visit the cornteld at night cut
ting down the stalks and carrying away
the juicy ears. At times streams flow
ing through bottom lands where this
cereal is cultivated are fairly covered
with floating stalks-the result of the
nocturnal forays of these vermin. In or
der to make the tiinty grains tender they
will sometimes deposit the ears III wa
ter for two or three days. These ami
mails are fond of many kinds of vegeta-
bles, robbing apple orchards and patches
of turnips and parsnips. In winter and
early spring they subsist in great part
on the flesh of river mussels. Probably
they are driven by hunger to this diet
of shellfish.
Records of this habit are preserved in
the banks of many canals, where alter
nate deposits of shells cleaned by musk
rats and of sediment may be seen in
places reaching to a depth of some feet.
The means by which the animal obtains
the mussel from its shell has been much
discussed. Probably it is often done by
inserting the paws or teeth between the
valves and tearing them apart. If~ the
mollusk cannot be caught unawares,
the e'iSeS VI INC Slltll are uIOhtIl ny
means of the teeth. The heavier species
of mussels, it is believed, are carried
ont upon the bank and left until they
become weak or die, when the valves
can lie easily separated.
MuSkratS, you see, are very clever
creatures. Farmers attribute to them
an appetite for young ducks. but it is
probable that they are wrongly credited
with destruction actually committed
by turtles.
These rodents are very unsuspicious
and are easily captured. Many of them
are killed by means Of poisoned apples
or turnips placed near their burrows.
One of the most effective traps for them
is barrel without ends placed uprig hit
near the bank of stream, SO us to be
about half filled with water. Inside of
it upon the water are put grass and
weeds with some pieces of parsnips.
Every night the barrel is likely to cap
ture from one to half dozen musk
rats.
When rat gets inside, it is impossi-
BILE, owing to the depth of the water.
for it to stand upon its hind legs and
cut hole in the slaves above water
line. AT the same time it cannot get
out at the top. When several are taken
the same night, fight usually ensues,
resulting in the death CT all of the cap
tives either by the sharp teeth of their
com panions or by drowning. The musk
rat is very ferocious when cornered. Its
worst enemy, next to man, is the dog.
Hawks, owls foxes and mink all prey
upon it. These rodents have sometimes
been found in the stomachs of large cat
fish, but the fishes We're so tainted with
the flavor of the food as to be unfit to
eat.
With the building of canals in vari
GUS parts of the country has come a
change in the life of the muskrats in |
many localities. They have actually |
abandoned to a great extent the streams |
to take up their habitations along the |
banks of these artificial waterways. No |
doubt they realize the greater security |
afforded them from floods and other |
dangers. These animals will rarely oc
cupy banks of gravel or sand, preferring |
loan or light clay. Advantage has been |
taken Of this fact by railways, which so |
long as they construct banks of gravel |
and keep them free from vegetable |
growth are rarely bothered by the ro-
dents. Otherwise great damage is done, |
the burrows caving III, undermining |
the tracks and doing other injury.
In early spring the greatest damage |
is done. With the alternate freezing |
and thawing at that time of the year |
the coverings of the underground pas |
sages fall in, exposing cavities of sur
prising extent to one who does not know |
the amount of subterranean work these |
animals are capable of doing. Much |
vigilance with eyes and ears is often re-
quired to prevent such caving from |
causing disastrous injury to property. |
The burrows commonly extend into the |
bank for distance OF from 10 to 80 |
feet. There are usually two openings |
from which passages lead backward and |
upward from the stream very crooked |
ly. They end in large gallery, which |
is the home of the muskrat. Washing |
just So.
III - Idi