Back to Critters
Back to FOMS Home
Chesapeake Bay Critters
The Mystery Rodent Creature
- I am a brown critter, and I am a rodent.
- I live near streams, ponds, and/or rivers.
- I got my name from the musk-like odor I omit when I breed.
- My life is suited to the water. I need air to breathe, but I live in an underwater burrow.
- I have many enemies. Critters like minks, raccoons, coyotes, owls, hawks, and alligators prey on me.
- At birth we are blind, and with almost no fur.
- I feed on SAV, cattails, bulrushes, and the roots of plants.
- My main weapon is my very sharp teeth, which I use on my food I catch,
and also for defense.
- Scientifically, I belong to the subfamily Microtinae of the mouse and rat family, Cricetidae. I am classified as Ondatra Zibethicus.
- Females give birth to as many as three litters of 1 to 11 young each year.
Who Am I?