biology

Round-tailed muskrat

Round-tailed muskrat is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Round-tailed muskrat rather than just read about it. In short: The round-tailed muskrat (Neofiber alleni) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae, sometimes called the Florida water rat. The species is the only extant member of the genus Neofiber.

Key takeaways

Round-tailed muskrat belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Round-tailed muskrat to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Round-tailed muskrat from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The round-tailed muskrat (Neofiber alleni) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae, sometimes called the Florida water rat. The species is the only extant member of the genus Neofiber. It is found only in the Southeastern United States, where its natural habitat is swamps.

Description

The round-tailed muskrat is a semiaquatic and nocturnal species native to the Southeastern United States. Limited sexual dimorphism is seen among round-tailed muskrats, with female adults weighing an average of 262 grams (9.2 oz) and male adults at a slightly heavier average of 279 grams (9.8 oz). The round-tailed muskrat feeds on emergent aquatic grasses, including aquatic plant stems, seeds, and roots, to sustain its herbivorous lifestyle. The most prominent predators of the round-tailed muskrat are marsh hawks and barn owls, but most predation occurred when the round-tailed muskrats were found outside their normal territory, having been displaced by floods. The pelage of a newborn round-tailed muskrat varies from gray to ash-gray. Adults have a brown pelage with pale fur on the belly. This change in coat color is the result of a juvenile molt (between 7 and 30 days post partum) and a subadult molt (between 35 and 50 days post partum). Molting in round-tailed muskrats has been observed throughout the year, but is more prevalent during the autumn.

Distribution This muskrat is found through much of Florida and into southeastern Georgia, with the exception of northeastern Florida. This distribution is consistent with round-tailed muskrat fossils found in several Florida locations from the late Pleistocene. It is also consistent with the range of the muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) that is absent from areas where the round-tailed muskrat inhabits, due to filling the same ecological niche. Population densities of round-tailed muskrats average between 100 and 120 animals per acre of land.

Fossil record During the Late Pleistocene, round-tailed muskrats lived in coastal Georgia in the area around what is today Savannah, Georgia.

Habitat Large, high-quality wetland habitats in Florida and southeastern Georgia that have well-connected patches are preferred. Land areas that experience high grazing pressure from cattle are less likely to house many (if any) animals due to the negative effect grazing has on wetland grass available to round-tailed muskrats. In addition to actively selecting habitats to which to disperse, round-tailed muskrats shift among 10–15 rest sites within their home habitat ranges. They live slightly above water level in their wetland habitats. Their shelter consists of lodges, located on a layer of dense vegetation, that have been woven out of plant material, and they feed on feeding platforms located above water level. Round-tailed muskrats have been described to be social mammals, but they may live in colonies only when a shortage of suitable habitat occurs.

References

Further reading Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore. Round-tailed muskrat, Field Guide to the Rare Animals of Florida

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Round-tailed muskrat

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Round-tailed muskrat claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Round-tailed muskrat before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Round-tailed muskrat ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Round-tailed muskrat

In research: Round-tailed muskrat appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Round-tailed muskrat in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Round-tailed muskrat is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Aquatic mammals, Arvicolinae, Fauna of the Southeastern United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Round-tailed muskrat outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Round-tailed muskrat in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Round-tailed muskrat means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
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Frequently asked questions

What is Round-tailed muskrat in simple terms?

The round-tailed muskrat (Neofiber alleni) is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae, sometimes called the Florida water rat. The species is the only extant member of the genus Neofiber.

Why does Round-tailed muskrat matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Round-tailed muskrat?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Round-tailed muskrat.