All toes are webbed which can be evident in tracks around the pond.

This musky fluid is thought to be used to mark territory and communicate with other muskrats during breeding season.
Differences Between Muskrats and Beavers.

Contact your local wildlife office of the SC Department of Natural Resources for guidance on removing these animals. Consult the Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators list to find an operator near you.

They have sharp, predatory teeth. Early morning hours are the most likely time to catch a sighting of these animals. These burrows can undermine bank stability and are especially problematic for ponds that are held in place by earthen dams. Otters tend to enter and leave ponds in the same place, which over time creates a worn area known as an otter slide.

The most significant problem they cause is consumption of fish.

Muskrats generally live in the same sorts of areas that beavers do, including marshes and slow-moving streams. June 3, 2019. Beaver, Muskrat and Nutria Identification. They have many adaptations for swimming, including transparent membranes to protect their eyes underwater, nostrils and ears that close while swimming, and webbed feet to help them move around. If you need immediate assistance, please call 800-842-7296.

We provide immediate assistance if you discover a living or dead animal in your home. Muskrats are common in many of the islands ponds and wetlands. Beavers, Muskrats, and Otters are aquatic mammals whose ranges cover most or all of South Carolina, so there is potential for almost any pond in the state to harbor these fur-bearing animals. A muskrat lodge is much smaller and never as strong or as long-lasting as the lodges created by beavers. Muskrats have a tail that is flattened vertically (the opposite of the beaver) and is longer and more "rat-like". Please complete the form below and a technician will contact you within 24 hours.

Many residents regard otters as desirable animals because of their playfulness and curiosity.
They do have adaptations to live in the water, though. They have large, leathery, paddle-like tails that they use in several ways, the most indicative of which is slapping the water surface when disturbed. So, checking to see whether the tail is long and narrow or wide and flat will tell you right away which is which. While beavers also feed on plants near streams and ponds, the majority of their damage comes from dams. So, how can you tell them apart? Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to people of all ages, regardless of race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status and is an equal opportunity employer. Beavers fell trees and shrubs in yards to build their dams, which causes additional destruction. Muskrats and beavers are large, aquatic rodents that can easily be mistaken for each other.

Unlike beavers, muskrats do not have webbed feet. Beavers are much larger than muskrats! They generally create lodges for themselves using decayed plant matter, but have also been known to sometimes take shelter in beaver lodges. It is recommended that they community determine for itself, if otters are to be allowed to remain in the pond. It can be difficult to tell the two species apart when they are swimming because they have such a similar looking face. They are distinguishable from beavers by their smaller size and the characteristics of the tail and feet. How are these animals controlled?South Carolina regards all of these animals as furbearing species, which are protected under state law. Muskrats are not as damaging as beavers because they do not block pipes and outfalls with sticks and mud. While they are quite slow on land, they are quick and powerful once they get into the water. The burrows can breech the dam causing washouts, water loss, and downstream flooding.

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Connecting with Nature. Otters also tend to dine on the fish they have caught on the bank in the same area, so there may be an area beside the pond that is riddled with fish bones and scales. Beavers are North America’s largest rodent! They have waterproof fur and are able to close their lips behind their teeth to chew without swallowing water.

Muskrat vs Beaver - What's the difference? Also, you may contact a licensed Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator to have them trapped and removed for a fee. Otters are longer and leaner, they are agile, fast swimmers, and they have long, round tails that are covered in fur. Now that you have a better idea of the differences between beavers and muskrats, it’s time to go out to a wetland and try to spot and identify each one on your own! For instance, muskrats build their burrows into the banks of streams and rivers, destabilizing shorelines. How can these animals be distinguished from one another?Beavers (Castor canadensis) are the largest of the three species (40 to 60 lbs) and also are the slowest swimmers. It is important to be able to identify each animal to determine the potential for damage, because these three mammals have different behaviors and cause different kinds of damage. All fields are required.

But, a tell-tale sign that you are looking at a muskrat is that you can see its long thin tail above the surface of the water.

Guest User. A license is required to trap, dispatch, and transport these animals.

There are many clues that might tell you if there is a beaver in the area, including constructed beaver lodges, beaver dams, teeth marks on tree stumps where a beaver chewed the tree down, pathways leading to the water where the beaver may have dragged the tree, or large webbed feet tracks.

In addition, homeowners living near lakes, marshes, and creeks lose valuable crops and ornamental plants due to the pests’ eating habits.

On the other hand, a muskrat is smaller than a beaver so that, the beaver will overpower it. If your community has stocked triploid grass carp, otters may remove them from the pond.

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