Wandering gopher

[Lisa Millbank]

We were walking last night in Village Green Park by the railroad tracks, and heard a critter scuffling around in the weeds and blackberries.  Don turned his headlamp on and we could see a chunky brown rodent that seemed too stocky for a rat.  It was a Camas Pocket-Gopher bumbling around and poking its head into the grass from time to time.  It eventually got close to our shoes, where it paused as if trying to figure out what it had encountered.  We enjoyed getting a close look at the gopher's tiny ears, short tail and reduced eyes.  Eventually the gopher turned around and wandered back into the weeds to continue whatever it was doing.

It may have been unwise for the gopher to be roaming, because we'd heard the local Great Horned-Owl pair singing a duet in the park earlier, and then saw one of the owls fly low over Village Green Creek.  A Nutria started giving its peculiar "moaning" call from the beaver pond, and the owl flew in just a few moments later.  I wondered if the owl could possibly have heard the call and came in to investigate a potential meal, or if it was just a coincidence.

Lisa Millbank

[Michel]

Would be interested to hear a sound file of a nutria "moaning"!  If there is one.  Cannot find one via google search.

[Lisa Millbank]

Here's a decent example of a common nutria "moan" or "moo" sound from someone's trail cam:

https://youtu.be/iMohCV7Qrqs

They aren't very loud, but it's such a weird sound that you can't help but notice it.  I don't know if they are responding to something another nutria is doing, if it can be part of courtship, or if it's a territorial call that they do spontaneously.  They don't seem to do it often in broad daylight, more often at night.

Beavers make a more plaintive humming sound, but I don't remember hearing beavers humming except when they are right around their lodge, or inside it (can be heard through the ventilation hole on top of a bank lodge).

Lisa

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[Frank Kolwicz]

I've heard Nutria making a contnuous moaning while mating. It was in the ditch just west of the narrows of Baskett Slough a couple of years ago.

Frank
in Monmouth

On 10/20/2021 12:36 PM, Lisa Millbank wrote:
> Here's a decent example of a common nutria "moan" or "moo" sound from someone's trail cam:

> https://youtu.be/iMohCV7Qrqs <https://youtu.be/iMohCV7Qrqs>

> They aren't very loud, but it's such a weird sound that you can't help but notice it.  I don't know if they are responding to something another nutria is doing, if it can be part of courtship, or if it's a territorial call that they do spontaneously.  They don't seem to do it often in broad daylight, more often at night.
>
> Beavers make a more plaintive humming sound, but I don't remember hearing beavers humming except when they are right around their lodge, or inside it (can be heard through the ventilation hole on top of a bank lodge).
>
> Lisa
>

> On Wed, Oct 20, 2021 at 11:59 AM Michel <mls...@msn.com <mailto:mls...@msn.com>> wrote:
>
> Would be interested to hear a sound file of a nutria "moaning"!  If there is one.  Cannot find one via google search.
>
> On Tuesday, October 12, 2021 at 9:35:17 PM UTC-7 Lisa Millbank wrote:
>
> We were walking last night in Village Green Park by the railroad tracks, and heard a critter scuffling around in the weeds and blackberries.  Don turned his headlamp on and we could see a chunky brown rodent that seemed too stocky for a rat.  It was a Camas Pocket-Gopher bumbling around and poking its head into the grass from time to time.  It eventually got close to our shoes, where it paused as if trying to figure out what it had encountered.  We enjoyed getting a close look at the gopher's tiny ears, short tail and reduced eyes.  Eventually the gopher turned around and wandered back into the weeds to continue whatever it was doing.
>
> It may have been unwise for the gopher to be roaming, because we'd heard the local Great Horned-Owl pair singing a duet in the park earlier, and then saw one of the owls fly low over Village Green Creek.  A Nutria started giving its peculiar "moaning" call from the beaver pond, and the owl flew in just a few moments later.  I wondered if the owl could possibly have heard the call and came in to investigate a potential meal, or if it was just a coincidence.
>
> Lisa Millbank
>
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