I took this "in the dark" shortly after a tree snapping thunderstorm blew through Chicagoland Tues morning. I was a couple hndred feet away when I saw a "critter" climbing rapidly up a large downed tree branch in a swamp. When I got closer, I was able to tell that it was a muskrat. Here he is about 15 feet up in the air ... it took him about two seconds to cut off this little branch ... he did have to struggle with it on the way down ... other branches in the way.
Photo quality is horrible I know ... just thought it was an interesting muskrat behavior.
Paul
For sure it is a RAT. I'm posting another photo that shows it's tail a little better. BTW, a beaver's back feet are webbed, a muskrat's not.
BTW, I have seen a beaver in the same pond ... but only once. He did the tail slap thing for me which I thought was cool.
Paul broncoholic wrote:
Not questioning you, but it looks like a Beaver to me.
An adult muskrat typically weighs only 2 to 5 pounds. While a beaver has a broad flat tail a muskrat has a thinner more rat-like tail.
This Pond, in a country patch of suberbia, is pretty well dried up and its Beaver is long gone.
But I'm taking photos at another pond right in the middle of 65,000 people that does have an active beaver ... This time of the year his little beaver built pond is nearly inaccessible due to cattails, and swamp water but I'll get him if the mosquitos don't get me first.
Paul
quote]Imagemaster wrote:
Great captures, Paul. I guess muskrats can climb trees when they are at this angle.
