Shooting is probably the most humane approach to controlling porcupine populations. Muskrats produce many young. Coyotes, raccoons, skunks and woodchuck are not protected and can be taken year-round when they are doing or about to do damage on private property. I shot trap there as part of a High school team and the facilities are in good shape. Some species can be well over 60 lbs., and over 2.5 ft. long. Predators like coyotes, cougars and bobcats prey on porcupines. Porcupines bristle up when alarmed, and a small muscle attached to … It’s not just dumb people, either. My opinion is that if you keep an 7 inch bluegill, it cannot grow to 10 inches or 12 inches, etc. It is just a scavenger, and if it poses a … The Minnesota DNR suggests that, if you encounter a cougar: Face the cougar directly, raise your arms to make yourself appear larger and speak loudly and firmly. All species are equipped with defensive spines, which protect them from predators. A lifetime of grasses, herbs, bark and other vegetation can leave little bits of indigestible matter behind in a porcupine’s digestive tract, where they occasionally congeal into a hard ball called a bezoar. The problem with using lethal traps is that they aren't always discriminate in what animals they kill, and the type of bait that will attract a porcupine is also likely to attract other animals. People have been wrong about porcupine quills for over 2,500 years, and don’t seem to be getting any less wrong. If that doesn't work, they may charge backwards into the predator. That species is the North American porcupine ( Erethizon dorsatum), which is also frequently referred to as the common porcupine. A single animal may have 30,000 or more quills. Most cougars will avoid confrontation. Killing porcupines using a lethal trap is another method that some people will use when they are trying to solve a porcupine problem, and for the skilled trapper then this can be effective. Check with your local county. I'm in it to catch big fish and hunt quality bucks. Porcupines are mammals. Opossum, porcupine, weasel, red squirrel, ground squirrel and feral swine can also be taken year-round with a valid Michigan hunting license. Though if you need a paper target, you can download and print as many Alien Gear 8" x 11.5" printable targets as you want. Porcupine. Although there are numerous different species of porcupines in existence, only one roams throughout the United States, according to the National Geographic. Very old porcupines appear gray or white. A porcupine’s diet is wide, varied, and a little hard to digest. It was amazing and so different then what I used to doing. Unlike the beaver, the muskrat does not store food for the winter. But you start with the land, not the paperwork. However, if the enemy keeps scaring, they run back to attack them with their quills. Length: The muskrat is about 20 inches long, including its 9-inch tail. Sometimes, porcupines strip bark to the extent that the trees die. The Debunker: Can Porcupines Shoot Their Quills? If you want to use some land you would have to check that specific land, the county tax records is where you might start. Despite a very slow walking pace and a low reproductive rate, its coat of long, sharp quills enables the porcupine to live a long life by protecting it from predators. If a tip is left in the body, it can travel and enter a vital part, killing the animal weeks later. General description: The muskrat swims low in the water, with its long, almost-hairless tail curling behind. Remember, porcupines love salt and anything coated in it. Just loaded up some steel in the back of a pickup and went out int he desert and plinked for hours. Several hundred muskrats can live in a single wetland. The muskrat is not really a rat, but it is a common herbivore (plant eater) of Minnesota's wetlands. The fisher is most adept at killing the porcupine, but other predators include the bobcat, wolf, and coyote. Hedgehogs stick them up so you wont pick them up, that wont do much harm. Muskrats produce many young. Porcupines cannot “shoot” their quills, but the quills come out quite easily on contact. The muskrat and its bigger cousin, the beaver, are the only mammals that actually build homes in the water. These rodents are relatively large compared to the rest of the order Rodentia. Porcupines have a great sense of smell so that the porcupines can sense the enemies from a distance. Whether you can shoot in your backyard comes down to your local ordinances, so know them by heart before opening up on your favorite target, paper or otherwise. On occasion, they can be attracted to the wood handles of tools, wheelbarrows and gloves because of salty sweat absorbed in those items. © 2020 Minnesota DNR | Equal opportunity employer |, Call 651-296-6157 or 888-MINNDNR (646-6367). But not this one. As soon as the quills are dry, a new-born porcupine can defend itself from some predators. The porcupine is unprotected in Minnesota. When do porcupines shoot their quills? The quills have many barbs - a single porcupine may have as many as 39,000 barbs. Females may announce their readiness to breed by "screaming" from a tree top. Every farmer I have ever spoken to, has asked me to kill porcupines if I see any on their property. While they appear clumsy on the ground, they are very adept tree climbers. Trapping, of course, helps to keep these prolific animals in balance with their habitat. I would check their dates for such events though. During other seasons, favored foods are the bark, buds, and needles of trees. Porcupines will move on after eating anything that they can. Not to catch dinks and shoot spikes. Their fur ranges in color from brownish-yellow to black, and they sport white highlights in their quills. So if you live in a rural area where roads are salted in winter, your tires will be fair game. Most are dark colored, with lighter colored spines or spine tips. You must stop shooting if the threat is … Length: Adults are 24 to 40 inches long, including the five to seven inch tail. Same if you shoot a spike or fork buck. The answers depend on the state you live in and on your circumstances. When on land, muskrats are vulnerable to predation by foxes, coyotes and raccoons. Even though the muskrat is mainly a plant eater, it also eats small fish, clams, snails, and even turtles. Despite a very slow walking pace and a low reproductive rate, its coat of long, sharp quills enables the porcupine to live a long life by protecting it from predators. © 2020 Minnesota DNR | Equal opportunity employer |, Call 651-296-6157 or 888-MINNDNR (646-6367). Contact your local DNR office for more specific guidance. They are vegetarians. Porcupines use the quills as a defense. An adult female can have two or three litters of up to 10 young each summer. porcupine can throw its quills at an attacker is a widely-believed bit of animal misinformation. Porcupines can be vicious killers. The young weigh about one-half ounce at birth, but grow rapidly and can live on their own after only one month. While, In fact, in Minnesota, you can shoot an intruder — even kill — if you feel threatened with great bodily harm or death. Hiya husky, I am unsure of any public land, but the West End Gun club has events at which you can shoot for free. Q. The porcupine is one of the most interesting and unusual wildlife species in Minnesota. If you believe, as I do, that the moral arc of the universe bends away from ignorance, then the matter of porcupine defense is a depressing one. Color: The upper body is reddish brown, while the under parts are grayish brown. For information on the state’s response, visit the Department of Health website. A valuable furbearer, the muskrat provides income for trappers of all ages. There may be several porcupines in a square mile of forest habitat. General description: A slow-moving mid-sized mammal with white-banded quills and somewhat roundish appearance. The North American porcupine is found in New England, the upper Midwest and western United States and most of Canada. I would rather shoot the varmint and keep quiet, than pay the price when my dog gets it. Twins do not occur in the porcupine world. A. Porcupines do not shoot their quills and only intentionally loose them as a final resort when all other defensive warning measures have failed. It lives in marshes, ponds, and streams that have many water plants. A single young is born in spring that already has its eyes open and has a complete set of quills. Adults use their stiff quills as "braces" to help them climb trees. Curiously enough, despite the range of ages specified in the varying licenses seeming to go from 10 to infinity, there exists a lifetime license for a child as young as 3 years of age. As soon as the quills are dry, a new-born porcupine can defend itself from some predators. So it looks like you can shoot on public land in MN? The porcupine is one of the most interesting and unusual wildlife species in Minnesota. Porcupines’ back, sides, and tail are covered with thousands of stiff, needle-like, finely barbed hairs (quills) for defense. Many people consider porcupines to be a nuisance because of the damage they cause to trees and wooden structures. Color: Dark gray to black, with white-banded quills. Porcupines are found throughout the upper two-thirds of Minnesota. Some raptors (bird predators) such as eagles and ospreys will attack swimming muskrats. Besides the Sand Dunes. Muskrats have several litters each season. Although famous for its domed houses of mud and vegetation, it just as often lives in burrows. If you have these attractants around your property, porcupines may come looking for a snack. The most obvious trait is the long, sharp quills that cover their bodies. It needs to eat fresh plants each day, and sometimes it makes channels in the mud to get from its house to reach food under the ice. The North American porcupine is the only species that lives in the U.S. and Canada, and is the largest of all porcupines. Something interesting: The quill of the porcupine is scaled so it moves forward every time the victim moves. That is where they spend the winter and raise their young. If you shoot him, will you be criminally charged with assault or murder? NOTE: Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge (Big Stone and Lac qui Parle Counties) 44843 County Rd 19, Odessa, MN 56276, 320-273-2191.Small Game and deer hunting are open as posted with “Public Hunting Area” signs or shown on maps available at parking areas and at the Refuge Headquarters. The sedentary winter is the gestation period for the single porcupine offspring that will be born in April or May, its parents having enjoyed an extremely brief, if sweet, courtship in late October or early November. The young weigh about one-half ounce at birth, but grow rapidly and can live on their own after only one month. The Old World species have spines that are grouped into clusters, while the New World species have spines that are attached to the skin singly. Predators always take a chance when they attack a porcupine, because they risk getting quills in the face and eyes. Could the intruder sue you for wounding them? Populations of some species, especially turtles, can be adversely affected by the removal of a small number of individuals. For information on the state’s response, visit the Department of Health website. See the thing is I recently visited out west and went shooting with a friend. Porcupine dens are easiest to spot in winter, when there will be large accumulations of scat around the entrances and hemlocks with partially stripped branches nearby. Males seek receptive females beginning in late fall. It has no value as a hunted or trapped species, but it is an important member of the forest community. Weight: Adults weigh from 18 to 35 pounds. Often, the muskrat can be seen carrying aquatic vegetation as it swims. If they become overly-abundant, they may create problems by digging holes in dikes and dams or tunneling out bank dens along lake and river shorelands. DNR RESPONSE TO COVID-19: For details on adjustments to DNR services, visit this webpage. Porcupines will eat most anything. Muskrats eat the roots, stems, leaves, and fruits of a many water plants, such as cattail, wild rice, water lilies, and rushes. All predators use the same method for attacking; this includes rapid bites to the porcupine's facial area, followed by biting into the quill-free underside. In addition to plant material, porcupines crave salt and are attracted to objects that have salty human sweat on them, such as ax handles, boat oars, etc. It may not grow into a quality but it will never get there if you shoot it. The muskrat is found throughout of Minnesota. Other Wildlife There is no restriction in New Hampshire on the taking of woodchucks, porcupines, English sparrows, European starlings, common feral pigeons, red squirrels and other rodents not covered in this publication. During summer, porcupines eat leaves, nuts, and berries. In order to hunt in Minnesota, there are a variety of licenses that you can choose from depending on who you are and what you plan to hunt. DNR RESPONSE TO COVID-19: For details on adjustments to DNR services, visit this webpage. Is there a coyote bounty program in Minnesota? Some quills can get up to a foot (30 centimeters) long, like those on the Africa's crested porcupine, according to National Geographic. For example, there is a lot of state land along the Minnesota River, usually in small parcels that were tax forfeited yars ago. An adult female can have two or three litters of up to 10 young each summer. Food. Porcupines stamp their feet and use their sharp teeth and start fowling so to scare the enemy. When faced with danger, the porcupine will usually climb a tree. All porcupines have a few traits in common. Smart News Keeping you current Porcupine Quills Can Kill Researchers in Italy watched porcupines corner a dog and stab it to death. Porcupines are also attracted to salt. So, what legal protection might you have if you shoot an intruder? You weigh out the odds. The muskrat's main predators are mink and otters. 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