NUTRIA

also called Coypu (Myocastor coypus), semi-aquatic South American rodent usually placed with the hutia in the family Capromyidae (order Rodentia), sometimes classified in a separate family, Myocastoridae. The nutria is a robust, muskrat-like animal with small eyes and ears, a rounded, scaly tail, partially webbed hind feet, and broad, orange incisors. It is about 1 metre (39 inches) long, including the long tail, and may weigh about 8 kilograms (17 1/2 pounds). Its fur is reddish brown and consists of coarse guard hairs overlying a soft undercoat. The nutria lives in a shallow burrow along a pond or river and feeds mainly on aquatic plants. It produces up to three litters of two to eight young per year; gestation takes about 135 days. Nutria fur is of some value in the fur trade. Persistent hunting in the 19th and early 20th centuries, however, led to a decline in populations. The animal was subsequently introduced into North America and Europe for breeding purposes. Some nutrias escaped or were turned loose, and in many countries they have become pests that damage crops and compete with other wildlife.