As many know this will be my 77th year, tracking and trapping the little critter known as a muskrat. Every year I say this will be my last one... But then I think about it all year long and finally realize there is something I haven't tried and that I should try. After much thought, I have decided that I should probably give it another go this year. Rat and coon populations are both down in my area... I decided maybe I would not only concentrate on muskrats but try for more mink. Of course, there never have been a high population of mink, which makes it even more of a challenge. The county I live in is the county that I grew up in, as well as the county I started trapping.

While scouting a place that I have trapped for the last ten years, I came across something I had seen before, but never in this part of the state. This body of water is a spring run, that runs through a golf course. There have been 3 roller dams added to the stream some 25 to 30 years ago. This creates several nice ponds with crystal clear water, firm edges but murky centers, and 20 feet wide. Out of the 3 ponds, I found three of these balls of grass. The only other time in Ohio I have something similar was in the marsh country along Lake Erie. There they were made up of cattails, roots and other water grasses. There I believe they were basically the same as a beaver feed pile, where there was always ice in the winter. Although these little ponds do freeze over there are always places, they can get out and get fresh grass or roots.

Here is a close up.



There is a den where you see the 2 leaves that form a "T". At the bank there is a spot that is a darker... that is the den entrance.
I didn't take photos of the other 2, because the sun had gone behind a clouds. They looked the same as this one. I guess the ball was 6 inches or more in diameter and was in 9 or 10 inches of water.

What say you?

Garry-

I think you are right that those are muskrat, feed storage balls. I've only seen those in Wolf Creek in Arlington, Ohio and in 2 ponds off of Hempstead Station in Kettering, Ohio. Both places had muskrats.

Keith

Looks just like a muskrat feed bed to me. I used to find them under bridges and overhangs. I have also seen them made on top of drift piles just under water.

This may be a feed bed, but it not what is common for this area. The ball of grass in this case is free moving and not stationary as are most feed beds in this area.

When I post something like this, I am posting it as a teaching tool for younger trappers, with a lot less experience than I have. I have always tried to teach others over the years whether they were 8 or 70 years old. I have always felt that keen observation is as important as setting your. If the fact be known, it is probably more important, because can tell you exactly where to set your.

I think we, older trappers with more experience, owe it to the younger, less experienced trappers... the opportunity to learn things it may have taken us years to learn on our own. It should be our responsibility to offer our knowledge to the youth of our countries, now before it is too late.

Garry-

There is no defined sign showing the creation of the ball.

Feed bed was against the bank, water came up and floated it out?

An interesting statement. I'm doubting muskrats have the same instinct as beaver to cache food for the upcoming winter. However, since muskrats do make pushups through the ice here in Wisconsin for food and a place to rest, perhaps that particular instinct expresses itself in the form of these "cache balls." Something I will keep a sharper eye out for this winter in open streams and springs.

Good picture.

Seems to me if this was an active feedbed, the substrate below/around the grass ball would show sign of muskrat activity, ie disturbed plant matter, soil, etc. I'll go with RM's thought, it drifted into this spot.

I'm also thinking this den entrance is an old one. Very little disturbance at the entrance and hardly any sign of a typical run. Also, just south of this entrance by a foot or two is another old entrance, with sign of the old run heading due east.

A little exploring up on the bank might reveal where the single run or possibly two runs arrive at the bank with enough height to sustain 'rats through the winter.

Perhaps a third old run at the very bottom of the pic? Hmmmm . . .

Good pic, thanks.