Beavers and Muskrats

[deckardcanine]

Both beavers and muskrats are semiaquatic
Brown rodents found almost throughout the U.S.
They’re easy enough to distinguish by tail,
But when tails are unseen, then it’s harder to guess.

That said, if a critter is swimming along
In the water and all you can see is the head,
It’s likely a beaver: The muskrat’s whole body
Is normally seen; it must not like to tread.

You can’t always tell from the animal’s lodge,
As a muskrat will live in a beaver’s at times,
But lodges of cattails and mud on a tree stump
Are bound to be muskrats’; that’s one of the signs.

Such lodges are also much smaller than beavers’,
In tune with the relative size of each beast:
A muskrat weighs only 4 pounds at its biggest;
A beaver adult will reach 30 at least.

The feet are another good sign to consider.
The muskrat’s front fifth toe is tricky to see.
Its hind feet are shorter and narrower next
To a beaver’s and webbed to a lesser degree.

Of course, the most famous distinction between them
Is whether they gnaw on the trees and build dams.
I could keep this going, but you know enough now;
It’s not like you’re studying for an exam.