Mammals - invasive

Nutria (Myocastor coypus) on Feb 16, 2019

Submitter does not have a specimen

Description of specimen

At first glance I thought it was a beaver but then I saw the rat-like tail.

Commentary

Thank you for your report! Unfortunately nutria are a common sight in the Willamette Valley and other places in Oregon. Depending on the needs of the site and potential damage nutria are or may be causing, they are sometimes removed, but our nutria populations are healthy and others will often return. There is a lot of good information about nutria in Oregon on the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's Living With Wildlife site, https://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/living_with/nutria.asp.

Lindsey Wise
Nov. 15, 2019, 3:05 a.m.