AnAge entry for Ondatra zibethicus

Classification (HAGRID: 02543)

Taxonomy: Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Chordata
        Class: Mammalia (Taxon entry)
            Order: Rodentia
                Family: Cricetidae
                    Genus: Ondatra
Species: Ondatra zibethicus
Common name: Muskrat
Synonyms: Castor zibethicus, Ondatra americana, Fiber zibethicus nigra, Fiber zibethicus maculosa, Fiber zibethicus varius, Fiber zibethicus niger, Ondatra zibethicus zibethicus, Fiber macrodon, Fiber obscurus, Fiber occipitalis, Fiber osoyoosensis, Fiber spatulatus, Fiber zibethicus albus, Fiber zibethicus aquilonius, Ondatra zibethica bernardi, Fiber zibethicus cinnamominus, Fiber zibethicus hudsonius, Ondatra zibethica goldmani, Fiber zibethicus mergens, Fiber zibethicus pallidus, Fiber zibethicus ripensis, Fiber zibethicus rivalicius, Fiber zibethicus zalophus, Ondatra zibethicus ripensis

Maximum longevity: Not yet established
Observations: There are conflicting reports about the longevity of the muskrat. In the wild, these animals live about 3 years. It has been suggested that they live up to 10 years in captivity [0434]. While this is plausible, it has not been confirmed. One specimen lived 5.8 years in captivity [0671]. More studies are necessary to better estimate the longevity of the muskrat.

: No information is available on life history. Please contact us if you wish to suggest or contribute data.

[0776] Seluanov et al. (2007), Telomerase activity coevolves with body mass not lifespan (PubMed)
[0671] Richard Weigl (2005), Longevity of Mammals in Captivity; from the Living Collections of the World
[0036] Savage et al. (2004), The predominance of quarter-power scaling in biology
[0420] White and Seymour (2003), Mammalian basal metabolic rate is proportional to body mass2/3 (PubMed)
[0610] Ernest (2003), Life history characteristics of placental non-volant mammals
[0434] Ronald Nowak (1999), Walker's Mammals of the World
[0441] William Burt et al. (1998), A Field Guide to Mammals
[0455] Virginia Hayssen et al. (1993), Asdell's Patterns of Mammalian Reproduction: A Compendium of Species-Specific Data
[0680] Wootton (1987), The effects of body mass, phylogeny, habitat, and trophic level on mammalian age at first reproduction
[0731] Zullinger et al. (1984), Fitting sigmoid equations to mammalian growth curves