Is there any Nutria in Lamar co around the Buttahatchee river bottoms? I captured something on my trail camera that looks bigger than a muskrat but not sure

Could be a river otter.

River otter -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_river_otter


Nutria -- http://www.nutria.com/site.php

I bet it's not a nutria. It's either a beaver or an otter. Too far north for nutria, in my opinion.

Definitely not a beaver or an otter. Maybe it's smaller than I think and is a muskrat

Groundhog then?

I have seen numerous river Otter on the Buttahachee but that was a good 20 years ago. Also saw a white mink there. Its a neat place.

Nutria have been in Luxapalila bottom for several years,Eagles have been there for 15 years also gators.

WGI_0001.JPG

Trying to post a picture but I'm far from technical. It has a tail like a possum and looks like white hairs around the mouth

Sound like a nutria to me.

Sent you a PM.

Thanks Cuz Pat. I sent you a picture. I didn't think much about what it is last week when checking my camera but sitting here at home flipping through pictures it had me curious

Nutria looks like a big fat rat. It's a Nutria.

My Grandfather used to catch them around Bay Minette Basin years ago. He said they were delicious.

Thanks Perch, I was curious if that's what it was.

When I was a kid they held Nutria rodeo's in Mobile every year. The guy that killed the most, the biggest and the smallest got a tin boat, motor and trailer. That was before they protected gators. Now you rarely see them. They must be delicious to gators too.

Perch,
With all the critters the Cajuns eat, do they eat those big things?

I'd bet some do. Hell if you'll eat a grinnel(shoepick), you'll eat anything.

Looks like a nutria to me.

Was listening to the MeatEater pod cast a couple of days ago and they were discussing Nutria and eradicating them in a certain state (don't remember which one), and the guy on the show was talking about people eating them.

Have you listened to the 2 part podcast about the Afognak Island elk hunt and getting charged by a bear? If not, make sure you do. It's great.

My wife and I listened to it while traveling. We both loved it.

Them things can do some damage. A guy was building tiny homes on pontoons. He had several on smith lake for a show. The day of the show they had one floating out of 20 or so. Nutria had chewed holes and made them a nice den in the floats.

That's a good size one too. Back in jr high I would got $15-$18 for that things hide. I could have that thing skint scraped and stretched in about 15 mins. I spent a many a day in the old fur house with my grand father. I remember many mornings having to be careful because we had so many rats in the old wooden boat. Work all day from skin to stretched and put in the drying room. Come in at night and bathe, eat supper and straight to bed. Get up the next morning at 0400 and start it all over again. I sure do miss that man and that time in my life.

That's normal ops on that island. The bears have learned to associate food to the gun shots. Its a loud dinner bell. Some bears on Kodiak do the same.

I kill a few nutria every week. Oregon doesn't have a reward program but, Washington does. Someone mentioned eating them. My boss, his brother, and a coworker grilled one, all said it was good.

Yes that is a good one.

I’ve seen a couple of nutria on the TN River.

I've seen them in Pickens county

If you get real bored, go read the history on this invasive species. Tabasco pepper man(McIlhenny)sp
Thought they would make him millions in Louisiana and it didn't work out so well.
As an earlier poster stated, they used to have Nutria rodeos on the causeway. Fires would be set in the lower Delta and then it was "game on".

I've killed a few at pickensville

Nutria have destroyed between 7000-8000 acres of marshland in the Chesapeake Bay area of Maryland since they were introduced there in the 1940's...
They're a fur-bearing mammal, no place that most of us frequent is too far north...

Mmmmmmm jambalaya

They are fine eating. Very similar to a rabbit. Don't see them much down here on the delta much any more though due to the gators.

Crazy. I never knew.

I imagine Nutria tastes pretty good, they eat plants not roadkill like a possum does.

I killed 100's of them when I lived in Maryland. They will destroy a marsh, and will kill a duck dog.

Nutria and longer than that, that is a muskrat.

Nope...muskrat have a furred tail. Nutria have bare tail, similar to opossum or wharf rats. The animal in the pic is a nutria.

Take it from a Cajun. Nutria are good eating. As said above, they only eat grass, same as a rabbit. I've eaten them grilled and smothered down in gravy and onions. Louisiana has a bounty on them, $4 a tail.

Nutria. And yes, they're all over around here.