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Background Nutria grow to a length of about two feet and weigh about 15 to 20
pounds. The beaver-like nutria have large yellow incisors and enormous
appetites. They forage on the essential root mats of wetland grasses.
The destruction of these root mats destabilizes soil, which leads to
erosion of vital wetland areas. Female nutria reproduce throughout the
year, often giving birth to three litters annually. Adult nutria have
few competitors and often out-compete the native muskrat by aggressive
behavior and habitat requirements. The Problem
The Solution The rapid population growth of nutria, combined with the accumulated loss of marshes has prompted authorities to adopt a pilot project proposal entitled: " Marsh Restoration: Nutria Control in Maryland." The project will involve three phases-outreach and education, behavioral and reproductive research and the testing of various control methods. Eradication, if possible, is the ultimate goal.
Nutria photo courtesy: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service To bookmark this page, please use this URL: http://www.chesapeakebay.net/nutria.htm For more information, contact the Chesapeake
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Nutria
(Myocastor coypus) are semi-aquatic rodents native to South America,
which now also occupy brackish water marshes in parts of Maryland, Virginia
and Delaware. The rodents were first introduced to the United States
to enhance the fur trade and control undesirable vegetation. They arrived
in Dorchester County, Maryland in 1943 as part of an experimental fur
station. The station did not succeed and the nutria that were inadvertently
released to the wild produced the major populations that exist today
in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. 
Nutria's
foraging of wetland root mats results in:
