Stats

Lifespan

1-3 yrs

Size

Small

Diet

Omnivore

Activity

Crepuscular

Social

Solitary

Biome

Freshwater wetland

Range

North America

Movement

Swimming

Breeding

Live birth

Defense

Burrowing

Status

Common

About

This semiaquatic rodent builds dome-shaped lodges in North American wetlands. It can stay submerged for up to seventeen minutes by slowing its heart rate.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   newborn pup

   A blind, hairless pup nurses in the nest and is unable to regulate its own warmth.
2. 2.
   juvenile

   A weaned juvenile is fully furred, leaves the nest, and begins foraging on solid food.
3. 3.
   adult

   Fully grown and self-sufficient.

Learn more

• View on iNaturalist →

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Rodentia

Family

Cricetidae

Genus

Ondatra