Critter ID wanted

[Felix]

Today I walked on the river walk, to the dam and back to the RiverPark. Saw Bob with other birders watching the peregrines at the dam. Bob lent me his binoculars, I still couldn't see them.

A bit after that, I saw some critter I couldn't identify. Not unusual, 99.9 per cent of life on this planet is unknown to me.

May just be a stuffed toy some kid lost, it sure didn't move at all.





Edited to say I obviously don't understand nested links/image thumbnails yet. Sorry, folks. I will school myself further.

Further edit: Thanks, Bob. I think I get it now.

[Warkitty]

Definitely rodentia. I'm thinking muskrat, like this one:

[Felix]

I was thinking that, also, but the fur was so fine and fluffy, like some sort of wearable that would get PETA all worked up. The critter may have been ill or already dead, I suppose, it was so still, and in the middle of a highly public area, with people walking by, and cars not too far away.

I have only seen muskrats very wet from just leaving the water, so perhaps that was why the fur seemed so different.

[gridbug]

Muskrats look better when they are not so soggy.

How big was it?

[karyotic]

I hesitate to say this word on here.
Beaver??
They're back in full force in the TN watershed.

[gridbug]

That is why I asked the size instead of making a crass joke - but it looks like one nice beaver.

[Felix]

The animal was on the small size, maybe a foot long, although it was huddled up into nearly a ball, so maybe it was larger. I saw no tail, which would make it more likely a muskrat. Surely a beaver would have a visible tail...wait, that sounds...erm...

nevermind.

[NewsShooter]

Another possibility is a Nutria, a relative of the muskrat. They mostly live in swampy areas like the bayous of Louisiana, but have been known to live up this far north.

[joedog]

or a baby groundhog