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Project Noah Nature School
Myocastor coypus
Semi-aquatic rodent about the size of a house cat. This guy was swimming in the bayou along the trail. When he seen me he climbed up on a bit of flotant (floating marsh) to get a better look. After looking up a bit about them, I found out that Nutria is actually what everyone else calls the fur of the Coypu. I'm assuming because they were originally introduced here because of the fur trade the name of their fur stuck as the common name. They are now considered a pest here for consuming the fragile wetlands. However there are many factors that degrade the wetlands. From what I have been able to find they are native to South America, but I haven't been able to find a whole lot about them in their natural habitat. Most stuff I run across just talks about them being an invasive species. I am interested in knowing if they are also considered pests in South America? If anyone has info or a link to more info about them in their natural enviroment could you please pass along?
Spotted on Nov 15, 2011
Submitted on Dec 2, 2011
8 Comments
I agree Asergio, I find it very interesting that our different locales have such different views on this critter. From my area, I do believe they damage marsh but I sometimes think it is a partial effort to divert attention from other issues that also cause marsh damage but are less popular to fight against because of economical reasons.
I did come across this searching for disease info: "Nutria carry a number of parasites and diseases. Disease agents Louisiana nutria carry include Toxoplasma gondii, Clamidia psittaci, Francisella tularensis, Leptospira sp., and encephalomyocarditis virus. Parasites recorded from this species include trematodes such as Heterobilharzia americana, Echinostoma revolutum, and Psilostomum sp., cestodes such as Anoplocephala sp., acanthocephalans such as Neoechinorhynchus sp., and nematodes such as Trichostrongylus sigmodontis, Logistriata maldonadoi, and Trichuris myocastoris. In addition, they carry the nematode Strongyloides myopotami, which causes a condition known as "marsh itch" or "nutria itch" in people. This is a severe rash often affecting trappers when they handle nutria. It is caused by the larval form of this nematode which penetrates the skin of human beings." (http://www.iisgcp.org/exoticsp/nutria.ht...)
I looked up a few and most seem like virus and parasite type associated with contaminated drinking water. They are semi-aquatic so in an area where there is a more limited supply of water maybe contamination is a concern? Then again it could be just to prevent them from spreading further into the US.?
Annorion, Emma and Karen: I don't know of any specific desease spread by nutrias. Of course, that doesn't mean much, because there aren't many around were I live, so people are not concerned at all about them. But there are many other native rodents that live among us, like pacas and agoutis, and they are not considered pests too - like rats and mices are. Maybe the main concern of american autorities is the invasion of a foreign species, with all the problems that it causes - wich is certainly a prime reason to get rid of them. I'd like to know more about this, specially the diseases that they are suposed to carry. It would be an interesting thing to compare two so different situations, the US determination on exterminate nutrias, and brazilian efforts for their preservation.
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@asergio That seems to be about the same array of predators we have here with the exception of anacondas. I would think alligators would keep them in check here at least to some extent.
@Emma That's interesting to know. Partially what sparked my interest in these critters is tomorrow they will have a Nutria rodeo. The article I read also mentioned showing people how to cook the critters. I'm guessing whatever diseases they carry maybe a specific issue in your area and doesn't make their meat inedible.
Thanks for the info!
Nutria are known to carry a lot of diseases and therefore they are eradicated here. We are asked to report any sightings.
in fact i had a detailed explanation with Karen Saxton on one of my spottings which i finalized as muskrat.
There is so much similarity between the two. The main differentiating factor i used is that Nutria have orangish teeth . i did not see these on any of my sightings.
Yes, Annorion. Caimans, of course, 'cause they are aquatic animals. Also anacondas, foxes, some birds of prey and, last but not least, small to mid-size wild cats, like jaguatirica (oncilla).
Thank you both for the additional info! Can you elaborate on the type of natural predators they have there?
Annorion, nutrias are native to South America, and they are not considered pests here, because they have their natural predators, wich keep them checked. Also, the destruction of their habitat, along with intense hunting for their fur made them quite rare around here. Nonetheless, we can still find some individuals living around, as you can see in the link bellow:
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http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/765...
annorion, this link will take you to the section of a mammalogy book that has more info on coypu http://books.google.com/books?id=LD1nDlz...