Nature Nutria, nutria

Nutria, nutria · 07:26 PM

also known as the river rat, and coypu...
I found these animals--many of them--living 'in the wild' along a river nor far from... the European Parliament in Strasbourg. (It was two years ago, in June.) They look like huge rats; I know in some places in Romania they are (were?) farmed for their precious fur. They seemed to be very intelligent.

and a couple of lichens--I thought they looked interesting:

hks_kansei · 10-31-2012, 07:32 PM

The Nutria are cute, I quite like the image with the one swimming.

The Lichen is also nice, the second pic has a relly nice balance of tone, shape, and texture.

**Heinrich Lohmann** · 10-31-2012, 08:06 PM

Nice images, brings back memories, my dad used to farm them. The ones you find in Europe are descendants of escapees from such farms. They are native to South America.

**baro-nite** · 11-01-2012, 06:06 AM

Originally posted by First Poster

They look like huge rats

Not surprising, given that they are in fact huge rodents!

We also have them in the southeastern USA, for the same reason you have them in Europe -- once farmed for fur; now feral. Apparently they can do a lot of damage to marsh and swampland.

Also, nice shots of the lichens -- very interesting patterns and colors.

**dcmsox2004** · 11-01-2012, 07:12 AM

thanks for sharing new fauna !! always fun to see something different... dave m

causey · 11-01-2012, 11:20 AM

Originally posted by hks_kansei

The Nutria are cute, I quite like the image with the one swimming.
The Lichen is also nice, the second pic has a relly nice balance of tone, shape, and texture.

Thank you. It's cute you find them cute

They aren't frightening or anything, but I wouldn't call them cute. It was interesting to observe their social interactions, though.

Originally posted by Heinrich Lohmann

Nice images, brings back memories, my dad used to farm them. The ones you find in Europe are descendants of escapees from such farms. They are native to South America.

Thank you, Heinrich. That's what Wikipedia (to which I provided a link) says as well. I'm happy the set brought you back nice memories.

Originally posted by baro-nite

Not surprising, given that they are in fact huge rodents!

We also have them in the southeastern USA, for the same reason you have them in Europe -- once farmed for fur; now feral. Apparently they can do a lot of damage to marsh and swampland.

Also, nice shots of the lichens -- very interesting patterns and colors.

Thank you for your comment. Beavers are large rodents, but they look quite a bit different--cuter

Originally posted by dcmsox2004

thanks for sharing new fauna !! always fun to see something different... dave m

Thank you Dave. It was certainly fun to come across them after visiting the European Parliament.

charliezap · 11-01-2012, 01:48 PM

A nice informative series Stefan.--charliezap

slowpez · 11-02-2012, 01:32 PM

I remember having a coat with a collar made of nutria once many eons ago. They are cute but said to be very destructive to the environment.

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10-31-2012, 07:32 PM	#2
hks_kansei Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Posts: 834	The Nutria are cute, I quite like the image with the one swimming. The Lichen is also nice, the second pic has a relly nice balance of tone, shape, and texture.

10-31-2012, 08:06 PM	#3
Heinrich Lohmann Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Airdrie, Alberta Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,097	Nice images, brings back memories, my dad used to farm them. The ones you find in Europe are descendants of escapees from such farms. They are native to South America.

11-01-2012, 06:06 AM	#4
baro-nite Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: North Carolina, USA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,294	Originally posted by First Poster They look like huge rats Not surprising, given that they are in fact huge rodents! We also have them in the southeastern USA, for the same reason you have them in Europe -- once farmed for fur; now feral. Apparently they can do a lot of damage to marsh and swampland. Also, nice shots of the lichens -- very interesting patterns and colors.

11-01-2012, 07:12 AM	#5
dcmsox2004 Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: rhode island Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 7,522	thanks for sharing new fauna !! always fun to see something different... dave m

11-01-2012, 11:20 AM	#6
causey Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Arlington, VA Photos: Albums Posts: 3,757 Original Poster	Originally posted by hks_kansei The Nutria are cute, I quite like the image with the one swimming. The Lichen is also nice, the second pic has a relly nice balance of tone, shape, and texture. Thank you. It's cute you find them cute They aren't frightening or anything, but I wouldn't call them cute. It was interesting to observe their social interactions, though. Originally posted by Heinrich Lohmann Nice images, brings back memories, my dad used to farm them. The ones you find in Europe are descendants of escapees from such farms. They are native to South America. Thank you, Heinrich. That's what Wikipedia (to which I provided a link) says as well. I'm happy the set brought you back nice memories. Originally posted by baro-nite Not surprising, given that they are in fact huge rodents! We also have them in the southeastern USA, for the same reason you have them in Europe -- once farmed for fur; now feral. Apparently they can do a lot of damage to marsh and swampland. Also, nice shots of the lichens -- very interesting patterns and colors. Thank you for your comment. Beavers are large rodents, but they look quite a bit different--cuter Originally posted by dcmsox2004 thanks for sharing new fauna !! always fun to see something different... dave m Thank you Dave. It was certainly fun to come across them after visiting the European Parliament.

11-01-2012, 01:48 PM	#7
charliezap Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: saugus ma Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,686	A nice informative series Stefan.--charliezap

11-02-2012, 01:32 PM	#8
slowpez Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: South Carolina, USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 18,462	I remember having a coat with a collar made of nutria once many eons ago. They are cute but said to be very destructive to the environment.