Coypu

semi-aquatic species of the spiny rat family

The coypu (or nutria, Myocastor coypus) is a large, plant-eating, rodent which lives in wetlands.[1] The nutria first came from South America including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay.[1] Animals were taken to Louisiana in the 1930s to be farmed for their fur. Some of these animals escaped and are now living in the Louisiana coastal wetlands. They have become a pest and have damaged the environment.[1]

Coypu or Nutria
Temporal range: Late Pliocene – Recent
Scientific classification
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Myocastor

Kerr, 1792

References change

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Home - Nutria.com". nutria.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2010. Retrieved 17 June 2010.