Editing Muskrat (section)

{{short description|Species of rodent}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
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{{speciesbox
| name = Muskrat
| image = Muskrat swimming Ottawa.jpg
| image_caption = Muskrat swimming in [[Ottawa]], Canada
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Cassola, F. |date=2016 |title=''Ondatra zibethicus'' |volume=2016 |page=e.T15324A22344525 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T15324A22344525.en |access-date=19 November 2021}}</ref>
| display_parents = 3
| genus = Ondatra
| parent_authority = [[Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link|Link]], 1795
| species = zibethicus
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1766)
| range_map = Muskrat Range.svg
| range_map_caption = Range of the Muskrat {{Legend|#629F9A|Native}}{{Legend|#B69268|Introduced}}
| synonyms = ''Castor zibethicus'' <small>Linnaeus,&nbsp;1766</small>
}}

The '''muskrat''' or '''common muskrat'''<ref name="iucn status 19 November 2021" /> ('''''Ondatra zibethicus''''') is a medium-sized [[semiaquatic]] [[rodent]] native to North America and an [[introduced species]] in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. 

The muskrat is found in [[wetland]]s over various climates and habitats. It has crucial effects on the ecology of wetlands,<ref name="Keddy">{{cite book |last=Keddy |first=Paul A. |author-link=Paul Keddy |year=2010 |title=Wetland Ecology: Principles and conservation |edition=2nd |place=New York, NY |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-73967-2 |lccn=2010009142 |page=162 }}</ref> and is a resource of food and fur for humans.

Adult muskrats weigh {{cvt|0.6|-|2|kg|frac=4}}, with a body length (excluding the tail) of {{cvt|20|-|35|cm|frac=2}}. They are covered with short, thick fur of medium to dark brown color. Their long tails, covered with scales rather than hair, are laterally compressed and generate a small amount of thrust, with their webbed hind feet being the main means of [[Aquatic locomotion|propulsion]],<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fish |first=F.E. |date=1982 |title=Function of the Compressed Tail of Surface Swimming Muskrats (Ondatra zibethicus) |url=https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/article-abstract/63/4/591/928357 |journal=American Journal of Mammalogy |volume=63 |issue=4 |pages=591–597|doi=10.2307/1380263 |jstor=1380263 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> and the unique tail mainly important in directional stability. Muskrats spend most of their time in the water and can swim underwater for 12 to 17 minutes. They live in families of a male and female pair and their young. They build nests to protect themselves from the cold and predators, often burrowed into the bank with an underwater entrance. Muskrats feed mostly on [[cattail]] and other aquatic vegetation but also eat small animals.

''Ondatra zibethicus'' is the only [[extant taxon|extant]] species in the [[genus]] '''''Ondatra'''''; its closest relative is the [[round-tailed muskrat]] (''Neofiber alleni''). It is the largest species in the subfamily [[Arvicolinae]], which includes 142 other species of rodents, mostly [[vole]]s and [[lemming]]s. Muskrats are referred to as "[[rat]]s" in a general sense because they are medium-sized rodents with an [[Adaptation|adaptable]] lifestyle and an [[Omnivore|omnivorous]] diet. They are not members of the genus ''[[Rattus]]''. They are not closely related to [[beaver]]s, with which they share habitat and general appearance.