A large, dark-colored, semiaquatic rodent that is native to southern South America. 
As any resident of Louisiana knows, nutria is a herbivorous rodent, about half the size of a beaver, that is native to South America. The animals were shipped to fur farmers in the United States as early as the 19th century, and some eventually escaped into the Louisiana swamps. The nutria (Myocastor coypus, Fig. 1) is a large, dark-colored, semiaquatic rodent that is native to southern South America. At first glance, a casual observer may misidentify a nutria as either a beaver (Castor canadensis) or a muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), especially when it is swimming. Nutria are medium sized rodents that live in freshwater environments. They are native to South America. Nutria can grow up to 40 inches from its nose to the tip of its round, rat-like tail. They weigh an average of 12 pounds, although some can reach up to 40 pounds. Definition of NUTRIA. 1. : the durable usually light brown fur of a nutria. 2. : a large South American semiaquatic rodent (Myocastor coypus) with webbed hind feet and a round nearly hairless tail that has been introduced into parts of Europe, Asia, and North America. Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man: Nutria are large, web-footed rodents that are more agile in the water than on land. They live in burrows, or nests, never far from the water. Nutria may inhabit a riverbank or lakeshore, or dwell in the midst of wetlands. They are strong swimmers and can remain submerged for as long as five minutes. Nutria once lived only in southern South America, but they have been domesticated as fur animals and transplanted around the world. In many areas, including Canada and more than a dozen U.S. states, fur farm escapees quickly establish large wild populations near their new homes. Nutria (Myocastor coypus, Fig. 1) are semi-aquatic rodents native to southern parts of South America. In the 1930s, they were sold throughout North America to fur farmers and as a means of controlling unwanted aquatic vegetation. The nutria (Myocastor coypus), a large, semi-aquatic rodent native to South America, originally was brought to the United States in 1889 for its fur. When the nutria fur market collapsed in the 1940s, thousands of nutria were released into the wild by ranchers who could no longer afford to feed and house them.
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what is a nutria