Julie Hawk, age 11, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., for her question:

WHAT DOES THE MUSKRAT EAT?

A muskrat is a member of the rodent family that lives on the banks of streams, rivers, lakes, ponds or in marshy areas. Its main diet items include lily roots and stems, cattail roots and other water plants. The muskrat also occasionally eats small fish, mussels and crayfish.

Three species of muskrat can be found in North America. The most common can be found in most of Canada and the United States with the exception of Florida, Georgia and California. It is about 12 inches long and has a tail of almost equal length. The flattened tail is nearly hairless and acts as a rudder while the animal is swimming.

Other varieties include one found only in Newfoundland, Canada, and a round tailed muskrat that lives in southern Georgia and most of Florida.

Muskrats can also be found in northern Asia and Euro pe.

The animal gets its name from a musklike secretion it produces. Some muskrats are grown on farms for their fur. The fine underfur of the muskrat is often dyed. Resembling sealskin, the pelts are called Hudson seal.