The muskrat is not really a rat, but it is a common herbivore (plant eater) of Minnesota's wetlands. The muskrat and its bigger cousin, the beaver, are the only mammals that actually build homes in the water.

Minnesota has plenty of natural and farm ponds, shallow marshes, and streams where muskrats can set up house. A good habitat—with lots of food and clean wa-ter—may have 15 muskrats per acre, which is about the size of a football field.

Despite their common name, muskrats are semiaquatic voles, more closely related to lemmings than rats. They are uniquely equipped to live in lakes, streams, and rivers where calm water combines with emergent vegetation—plants that grow up and out of the water.

Muskrat at the water's edge. May 9, 2019, Washington County, Minnesota. The muskrat is a medium sized, reddish brown rodent. They grow up to twenty inches long and weight two to five pounds. Muskrats, being mainly herbivores, eat the roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of cattails, rice, rushes, and water lilies.

These small mammals can be found across most of the United States and Canada, including marshes, ponds, and streams all over Minnesota. "The great hurrah about wild animals is that they exist at all," Dillard explained.

Oct 10, 2023 · People still see muskrats in lakes, streams, marshes — even drainage ditches — but trapping data are the only regular measurements of muskrat populations in Minnesota. Muskrats have received...

In Minnesota, you are allowed to take muskrats without a permit if they are causing damage to your property. Some cities do not allow the discharge of firearms. If shooting is allowed, you are required to notify the MN DNR within 24 hours of taking a muskrat. If you choose to trap a muskrat, you do have the option to relocate it or take it.

The muskrat is not really a rat, but it is the most common herbivore (plant eater) of Minnesota's wetlands. It is the largest member of our family of native rats and mice (the Cricetidae). The muskrat and its bigger cousin, the beaver, are the only mammals that …

Jan 9, 2025 · muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) profile, photos, videos, county distribution map, and sightings in Minnesota.

Dec 29, 2020 · Muskrats are uniquely North American mammals and hold an important place in Native American legends and cosmology. For example, the Ojibwe Creation of the World: Wenebojo, having outwitted the evil manidog by trickery, at last found himself stranded in the pine tree. He crept higher, begging the tree to stretch as tall as it could.