Muskrat Lodges

Did you know that beavers aren't the only mammal that will build lodges in the water? Muskrats will also build lodges in marshes, but they will use different material than beaver. Instead of using sticks and branches, they will use cattails and bullrushes for a majority of their lodge. But location and resources is everything when building a house. If the marsh they live in doesn't have the necessary material, they will just dig burrows in the side of banks instead of making a whole lodge.

While they can look similar to beavers, muskrats are smaller and they have a tail that is long and skinny like a rats tail. Muskrats also do not have webbed feet, like on beavers and otters, even though they are proficient swimmers. They like staying near the water since it offers them protection from many of their predators. So if you see a lodge in the water, don't automatically assume it's a beaver's, it could be a muskrat home instead.