What does a North American porcupine look like? Porcupine: photo of a porcupine from North America. Population status, threats and protection

The porcupine is a mammalian animal that belongs to the order of rodents, the porcupine family (Hystricidae).

In the classification of rodents, a separate family of tree-porcupines or American porcupines (Erethizontidae) is distinguished, which live in North and South America. Outwardly, they are similar to animals from the porcupine family, but differ in their smaller size and shorter spines on the back of the back.

This article only describes the porcupine family.

Does the porcupine shoot quills or not?

Many believe that the porcupine shoots quills at its enemies. In fact, this is a misconception based on the fact that porcupine quills do not hold well in the animal's body and are easily lost. But the porcupine cannot shoot them in any way due to the lack of any anatomical devices and the shape of the needles themselves, which in any case are slightly curved and cannot be stabilized in flight. And the lightning-fast throw of the attacking porcupine, turning its back to the enemy and a sharp bounce back create the feeling that the beast has stuck a needle as if from a certain distance.

Poisonous porcupine quills are another common myth. Injection wounds are actually quite painful and heal for a long time, which is not surprising, because the sharp quills of a porcupine can even pierce a boot. In addition, dirt usually accumulates on the needles, and inflammation does not cause the mythical porcupine venom, but infection. In addition, porcupine quills are quite fragile, and fragments can remain in the wound, provoking suppuration.

Where does the porcupine live?

Porcupines live in Europe, North America (USA and Canada), South America, African countries, Southeast and Central Asia, India, and Transcaucasia. Representatives of the porcupine family inhabit a wide variety of biotopes: from humid tropical and subtropical forests to savannahs, deserts and mountainous regions. Many species settle near human habitation and feed on agricultural land.

Porcupine is a nocturnal animal, during the day it usually hides in rock crevices, caves, abandoned dens of other animals or self-dug holes. The porcupine burrow can be up to 10 m long and up to 4 m deep. The burrow usually has several “rooms”, burrows, one of which is necessarily lined with fresh grass. Porcupines do not hibernate, but in winter the activity of animals is noticeably reduced, and they spend most of their time in their homes.

Porcupines feed in the dead of night, moving away in search of food for several kilometers from their shelter. These rodents are not too afraid of people, so they often visit local cultivated lands - fields and melons, where they eat the fruits of human labor with pleasure: watermelons, melons, and many other crops. In places of regular exercise of animals, markedly trodden paths remain, along which an experienced tracker easily finds the shelter of animals.

Porcupines feed mainly in pairs: the male and the female walk side by side at a distance of about 30-50 cm from each other, and the male always keeps a little behind his companion. The porcupine is a predominantly herbivorous animal: true vegetarians are found among the species, although some individuals occasionally, but with pleasure eat various insects, other invertebrates and their larvae. According to experts, in this way animals make up for the deficiency of mineral salts in the body.

Porcupine's plant food is all parts of plants: rhizomes, tubers, shoots, leaves, and fruits. In the cold season, porcupines eat especially a lot of tree bark.

Porcupine classification

Soviet sources distinguish 4 genera of porcupines:

• Atherurus (brush-tailed porcupines),
• Hystrix (Porcupines),
• Thecurus (Indonesian porcupines, landaki),
• Trichys (Long-tailed porcupines).

Some Russian sources give 5 genera, including the genus Acanthion (Malayan porcupines).

Foreign sources distinguish only 3 genera of porcupines, excluding the genus Acanthion and Thecurus:

• Genus Brush-tailed porcupines ( Atherurus)
  • Atherurus africanus)
  • Asian brush-tailed porcupine ( Atherurus macrourus)
• Genus Porcupines ( Hystrix)
  • Malayan porcupine ( Hystrix brachyura)
  • Javanese porcupine ( Hystrix javanica)
  • South African porcupine ( Hystrix africaeaustralis)
  • Crested (crested) porcupine ( Hystrix cristata)
  • Indian porcupine ( Hystrix indica)
  • Rigid Porcupine ( Hystrix crassispinis)
  • Philippine porcupine ( Hystrix pumila)
  • Sumatran porcupine ( Hystrix sumatrae)
• Genus Long-tailed porcupines ( Trichys)
  • long-tailed porcupine ( Trichys fasciculata)

Types of porcupines, photos and names

Below is a description of several varieties of porcupines:

• Malayan porcupine ( Hystrix brachyura)

rather large and thick rodent. An adult animal grows in length up to 63-72.5 cm, while the weight of the porcupine varies from 700 g to 2.4 kg. The length of the tail is 6-11 cm, the color of the needles can be black and white or yellowish. Females bring offspring 2 times a year, there are usually 2-3 cubs in the litter. In nature, the Malayan porcupine feeds on bark, tubers and rhizomes of plants, fallen fruits. An insignificant part of the food is invertebrates and carrion. Representatives of the species prefer to settle in forests and in cultivated lands at an altitude of about 1.3 km above sea level. Malayan porcupines live in Nepal, Northeast India, Central and South China, Southeast Asia (Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Singapore), including the Malaysian Peninsula, as well as the islands of Sumatra and Borneo .

• South African porcupine ( Hystrix africaeaustralis)

Africa's largest rodent. The length of mature individuals is 63-80.5 cm with a porcupine body weight of 10 to 24.1 kg, with females somewhat heavier than males. The tail of the porcupine grows up to 10.5-13 cm in length. A distinctive feature of the species is a white line running along the croup. The body of the porcupine is covered with spines up to 50 cm long, defensive needles up to 30 cm long and flat bristly hairs. The tail is decorated with a bunch of modified, hollow inside needles. Females breed once a year, bringing from 1 to 3 cubs weighing from 300 to 440 g. Representatives of the species are vegetarians who consume exclusively plant foods: leaves, shoots, plant rhizomes, bulbs, fallen fruits, occasionally tree bark. In the wild, porcupines live for about 10 years, in captivity 2 times longer. The South African porcupine lives in South Africa, including Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Congo, Kenya and many other countries. The porcupine lives on all plant landscapes, with the exception of forests, and rises to the mountains no higher than 2 thousand meters above sea level.

• crested porcupine, he is crested porcupine ( Hystrix cristata)

a large rodent second in size only to the South American capybara and beaver. The name of the species comes from the hard crest that adorns the head of the animal. The crested porcupine is the most common member of the family, which is why it is often referred to simply as the porcupine. The length of adults, excluding the tail, can reach 90 cm, the tail grows up to 10-15 cm. Well-fed porcupine males can weigh up to 27 kg, but on average, the weight of rodents does not exceed 8-12 kg. The stocky body of the porcupine is densely dotted with short and long quills, with alternating black-brown and white colors. The longest needles are relatively thin and grow up to 40 cm, short needles are about 15-30 cm long, but reach a diameter of 4.5-5 mm. Between long sharp needles, which often fall out, there are stiff bristle-like hairs. In the middle of the back, the quills of the porcupine are the sharpest and longest, on the sides, shoulders and sacrum the quills are short and blunt. The northern part of the population breeds in early spring, and females bring 2-3, and sometimes 5 cubs once a year. Representatives of the species living in the south mate year-round, and females bring offspring two to three times a year. Crested porcupines are predominantly herbivorous rodents; in the warm season they feed on the green mass of plants. During the ripening of the crop, cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, watermelons, grapes and alfalfa are added to the diet. In winter, tree bark is eaten; porcupines rarely eat insects. Animals live in mountainous regions and foothills, on cultivated soils, sometimes they are found on desert sandy landscapes. Representatives of the species are widely distributed throughout almost the entire Middle East, including Iran and Iraq and further east, up to South China. They are found throughout India, live in Sri Lanka and in some countries of Southeast Asia. Also, crested porcupines live in some places in the southern and western parts of the Arabian Peninsula. In addition, the range of the species captures mainland Italy and the island of Sicily.

• Indian porcupine ( Hystrix indica)

a rather large species of porcupines with a body weight of about 15-18 kg and a length of up to 90 cm. In the Indian porcupine, like in most species, the quills are colored with black and white belts, which gives the impression of a variegated white-black-brown color. The belly and head are painted black-brown. The diet of rodents consists of various plant foods, with particular preference for succulent bulbs and plant rhizomes. Females breed 1-2 times a year, and the brood consists of 1-4 cubs. Indian porcupines are picky in terms of habitat and are found in forests, savannahs, deserts and mountain landscapes at an altitude of up to 3.9 km above sea level. Despite the specific name, the range of the species covers not only India, but also almost the entire southern territory of Asia - from the eastern part of Transcaucasia to Kazakhstan, Central and Southeast Asia.

• Javanese porcupine ( Hystrix javanica)

endemic species, whose representatives live only in Indonesia on the islands of Java, Bali, Sumbawa, Flores, Lombok, Madura. Rodents were probably brought to the island of Sulawesi from the island of Flores.

• Rigid Porcupine ( Hystrix crassispinis)

endemic to the island of Borneo, armed with especially strong and hard needles. These rodents outwardly very much resemble a closely related species - the Sumatran porcupine living on the island of Sumatra, but differ in larger sizes and thicker needles. The hard-spined porcupine lives in forests, mountainous landscapes up to 1.2 km above sea level, on cultivated lands and even in cities. The porcupine feeds on plants and also eats fallen fruit.

• Sumatran porcupine ( Hystrix sumatrae)

lives only on the island of Sumatra. Initially, it was part of the species of hard-spined porcupines, but later it was separated into an independent species due to the smaller size of the body and thinner quills. Adult individuals grow up to 45-56 cm in length and have a weight of 3.8 to 5.4 kg, the tail length is from 2.5 to 19 cm. Sharp flat needles, ordinary hollow needles and numerous hard bristles grow on the body of rodents. The length of the setae and quills of the porcupine does not exceed 16 cm. The general color of the animal is brown, but about ½ of the quills and setae have white endings. The neck of rodents from the underside can be covered with white spots. The Sumatran porcupine feeds on various types of plants, prefers to settle in forests and rocky landscapes, and sometimes rises to mountains no higher than 300 m above sea level.

Its needles are of medium length, and most of them are concentrated in the back of the body. The back of the animal is colored brown, the belly is whitish. The length of the body of adults reaches 35-48 cm, and the weight of the porcupine is from 1.5 to 2.25 kg. These porcupines have a long, scaly, brown colored tail that grows from 17.5 to 23 cm in length and is easily detached, so many adults, especially females, are often tailless. Long-tailed porcupines climb bushes and trees well. The diet of rodents is predominantly plant food, animals give special preference to various fruits and seeds, young bamboo shoots, they are also very fond of, and they rarely use invertebrates. Long-tailed porcupines live on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, settle in forests and on agricultural land.

• African brush-tailed porcupine ( Atherurus africanus)

a fairly common species of large rodents belonging to the genus of brush-tailed porcupines (Atherurus). The size of adult porcupines varies from 40 to 60 cm, and the length of their tail is not inferior to long-tailed porcupines and is about 15-25 cm. The skin of animals is covered with thin spines, among which are long and thick needles. These porcupines got their species name due to a special brush at the tip of the tail, which consists of thick hairs and is a kind of whitish or light brown brush. In the middle, the tail is bare, scaly, at the base it is dotted with needles. The African brush-tailed porcupine lives in forests near rivers and lakes, can swim well and feeds on various vegetation, roots, tubers, and insects. The range of the species extends across Central Africa south of Senegal, passes through the countries of the Gulf of Guinea (Nigeria, Ghana, Gabon) to the mouth of the Congo River, and also covers the islands of Fernando Po.

Detachment - rodents

Family - American

Genus/Species - Ereyhizon dorsatum. North American porcupine, porcupine

Basic data:

DIMENSIONS

Body length: 64-86 cm.

Tail length: up to 30 cm.

Weight: 3.5-7 kg, the weight of some males reaches 18 kg.

BREEDING

Puberty: from 1.5-2.5 years.

Mating period: autumn-early winter.

Pregnancy: Seven months.

Number of cubs: 1.

LIFESTYLE

Habits: porcupine (see photo of porcupine) swims well and crawls through trees.

What does he eat: tree bark, buds.

Lifespan: up to 17 years old.

RELATED SPECIES

There are 13 species of porcupines, including the tenacious-tailed porcupine and the Amazonian porcupine.

Talking porcupine (porcupine). Video (00:03:52)

Like other species belonging to this family, the porcupine spends most of its life on trees, the leaves and bark of which it feeds on. Nature endowed him with sharp claws and bare paw pads, thanks to which he perfectly balances on the branches.

WHAT DOES IT FEED

Porkupin looks for food high in the trees - where he spends most of his time. With strong light orange teeth, it gnaws on branches, leaves, seeds and fruits of various trees and other plants. His diet varies depending on where he lives and the time of year. At the end of winter, the animal leaves the forest to feast on young juicy grass in the nearby meadows. In summer, he finds food on the ground - roots and young shoots of plants, collects strawberries, seeds and inflorescences of various plants, nuts, he also eats aquatic plants. With the advent of winter, the porcupine returns to the forest and feeds exclusively on needles and bark. He loves juicy bast fibers very much, which during this period are an important element of his nutrition.

HABITAT

Porkupin prefers mixed forests, but if necessary, adapts to other, excellent conditions, such as sandy deserts, shrubs and even open expanses of tundra. He sleeps all day, curled up in a ball, in the forks of trees or in rocky crevices. Each animal has several such shelters located at different ends of the territory. At dawn, the porcupine goes to the nearest burrow. This is a conservative animal, it uses the beaten paths and leaves noticeable traces on soft ground or in the snow. In especially severe winters, the porcupine spends several days without getting out in its shelter or leaves it for only a few minutes. In the summer, he decides to retire some distance from the hole, but usually rarely crosses the boundaries of his possessions. In winter, porcupines are in a group.

BREEDING

Porcupine males, which lead a solitary lifestyle for most of the year, go in search of partners by the end of autumn or at the beginning of winter. Their eyesight is poor, but their hearing and sense of smell are well developed. Quite interestingly, these porcupines have a courtship ritual. It begins with the partners walking in circles, while they make high-pitched falsetto sounds. After mating, the male leaves the female. Seven months later, in April-June, the female gives birth to a single cub. The newborn is very well developed. Porcupine cubs are born already sighted. The length of the newborn is about 60 cm, and the weight is up to 500 g. Its body is covered with thick, long black hair, and the needles are short and soft. However, within half an hour after the birth of his needles harden. From the first day of life, the cub is able to follow the mother. When breastfeeding, the mother sits comfortably on the ground, sitting on her hips and tail. At the age of one week, the child already independently climbs trees. In the first month of life, he gradually begins to take solid food. Despite the rapid development of the cub, puberty occurs only at the age of 1.5-2.5 years.

PORKUPIN AND MAN

For the first white settlers of North America, porcupines were a desirable and easily accessible prey, one of the main sources of food. They hunt it for meat even today. Previously, the Indians used the quills of North American porcupines to make a variety of ornaments. Nowadays, people, especially foresters, are fighting against porcupine, because it feeds on the bark of trees, and this leads to the death of plants. In some areas, they are trying to limit the number of these animals by resettling their natural enemy, the pecan. The pecan manages to overcome the porcupine in this way: he lies in wait for an animal that does not suspect anything, then with a sudden throw he turns him on his back and bites into his stomach or chest with his teeth.

INTERESTING INFORMATION. DO YOU KNOW WHAT...

• Porkupin swims well. Needles, hollow inside, help keep the body afloat.
• The mass of porcupine can reach 18 kg, which is three times its normal weight.
• An adult porcupine has about 30,000 needles.
• The porcupine starts to gnaw at the tree from above: first it gnaws at the branches, then it takes hold of the trunk. Some forests that have a large number of these porcupines look like they were burned out as a result of a fire.
• Porkupin loves salt, so he gnaws on the handles of agricultural implements that are salty in taste.
• This animal builds its nest in the crowns of trees, sometimes even at a height of 6 m.

CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF PORCUPINE. DESCRIPTION

Lifestyle: the porcupine feeds on bark and leaves, and nests in the top of a tree.

Needles: straighten up in case of danger. They have small crevices that dig into the skin of the attacker.

Pecan:(aka ilka, aka fisherman) is one of the few predators that porkupin should be wary of.

Palms: pads on them are bare and hard, and long sharp claws help to climb tree trunks.

- Habitat of porcupine

WHERE Dwells

Forests of North America from Eastern Alaska and Newfoundland in the north to Tennessee and Northern Mexico in the south.

PROTECTION AND PRESERVATION

Porcupine is considered a pest because it feeds on bark - this leads to the death of trees. In some regions, people try to limit its numbers.

These prickly representatives of the order of rodents settled all over the world. They can be found in Africa, South and North America, Asian countries and even Europe. Representatives of different continents differ in their appearance and habits. The habitats of the porcupine are usually reflected in the name of the species: South African, Indian, Malay, Javanese, North American.

spiny rodent

The main feature of the porcupine is the quills that cover its back. They give the animal a formidable and intimidating appearance, it was this goal that nature pursued when creating this beast. The rodent, whose average weight is about 13 kg and a length of approximately 80 cm, carries up to 30 thousand needles. In places where porcupines live, there used to be legends that the animals shoot at the enemy with these poisonous needles. In fact, light, up to 250 grams, the needles are simply lost and fall off when walking over rough terrain. Their poisonousness is also in great doubt, although the injection is quite painful and can cause inflammation in humans.

The air-filled quills serve as floats for the porcupine, which allows them to successfully swim. An exotic outfit, donated by nature to the animal for protection, in the human environment has become its enemy. It is because of the colorful and long needles that go to jewelry that these animals are most often exterminated. The porcupine meat is considered a delicacy.

porcupine habitat

Spiny animals are considered more mountain animals. They can equip long burrows with many corridors in caves, mountain voids, but they also successfully dig themselves. Settlements of some species can be found both in the steppes and in the foothills, but even here they choose places with ravines and slopes.

The porcupine is not a predator. The diet consists of roots, fruits and berries of plants of the area where porcupines live in nature. These vegetarians are not averse to profiting from the fruits of the garden and often raid the farmsteads of peasants. Porcupines climb trees well, are nocturnal, and sleep during the day. Strong teeth allow the rodent to tear off the bark and gnaw on wood, so much so that over the winter up to a hundred plantings will be destroyed.

Porcupine crested or crested

This species of echinoderms is the most common and typical, also called Asian. Quite a large representative of its kind. There are males weighing 25-27 kg. Body length - up to a meter, plus 10-15 cm - tail. A beautiful color is the alternation of needles of black-brown and white colors. Where do crested porcupines live? Their distribution covers almost the entire Middle East region to the southernmost regions of China, India, Sri Lanka. It is also found in some countries of Southeast Asia, on

Asians eat greens: grass and leaves, they are not averse to dragging grapes, apples, cucumbers from gardens. Therefore, they settle closer to the cultivated areas. In winter, they switch to tree bark.

African echinoderms

The largest of the African rodents, the South African porcupine reaches 63-80 cm in length and weighs from 1 to 24 kg. It is distinguished by long, up to 50 cm, spines and a white line running along the croup. The needles on the tail are collected in an elegant bun. Where does the porcupine live? Mainland Africa, its southern part, is the birthplace of the animal.

Another representative of this continent is the African brush-tailed porcupine. Its range covers the countries of the central part of the continent and the island of Fernando Po. It is called the brush-tailed because of the light hair brush at the end of the bare scaly tail. This echinoderm rodent swims well, in addition to the usual plant food, it also eats small insects.

Indian porcupine

In appearance, this beast is similar to an ordinary Asian rodent, has a beautiful black-brown-white color, black head and paws. This is the most unpretentious species of porcupines: animals live in the highlands, and in the forest, and in the steppe regions, and even in semi-deserts. They eat everything vegetable, roots and bulbs. Despite the Indian name, it feels good in the mountains of the Caucasus, Central Asia and Kazakhstan.

Sumatra and Borneo

In the forests and agricultural lands of Sumatra, an atypical representative of this family is found: the long-tailed porcupine. Its dissimilarity to its counterparts is manifested in the fact that it has very thin and flexible needles, from a distance similar to thick brown bristles. They are located in the back of the body, closer to the tail. The whole appearance of this porcupine resembles an ordinary large rat. Long-tailed individuals climb trees and shrubs well, love bamboo shoots, fruits, pineapples.

The Sumatran porcupine, which lives only in this place, also lives on. This animal is relatively smaller than its relatives. The maximum length of the Sumatran endemic is 56 cm, the largest weight is 5.4 kg. Its appearance is similar to the long-tailed one - the same thin needles, more reminiscent of bristles. The coloration is also brown, but the ends of the setae are white.

The native of Borneo is considered to be the hard-nosed porcupine. Its appearance allows us to attribute it to the relatives of the Sumatran representative, but its needles are harder and larger in size. In addition to their usual habitats in forests and mountain ranges, these animals can also be found in cities, where they eat greens and fruits in parks and squares.

Where do porcupines live in America

Needlewools, which live on both American continents, look very similar to their typical tropical relatives, but are smaller and heavier. This is such a mini-copy of real porcupines, more like a hedgehog. Americans are evenly spiky, without particularly long spines at the back.

North American porcupines live in the United States, Canada. They hid their spines under a thick coat of wool. It is the only species in North America.

The southern continent has a large species diversity. American porcupines are called tree porcupines, they deftly climb trees, some settle down there for permanent residence in nests or hollows. There are species with tenacious tails up to 45 cm long, with which they cling to branches and shrubs.

Are there porcupines in Europe?

Rodents with spines are not typical representatives of the European fauna, but nevertheless, there are places in Europe where porcupines live. In what country did these heat-loving animals find their place? Families of these spine carriers can be found in Greece, Italy, Sicily. Common or crested porcupines have long lived here. Scientists argue about whether the settlement of porcupines in this area was an evolutionary process, or whether they were brought by the ancient Romans, who were great lovers of porcupine meat. On the territory of Russia, crested porcupines can be found in the South-Eastern Caucasus.

Erethizon dorsatum Linnaeus, 1758

Appearance

The North American porcupine is the second largest rodent in North America after the beaver: its body is 60-90 cm long, with a thick tail up to 30 cm long; weight 5-14 kg. The body from head to tail is covered with yellowish-white serrated needles (up to 30 thousand pieces) with black or brown ends. The guard hairs are somewhat longer than the needles. The contrasting black and white coloring is meant to alert would-be attackers to danger.

Lifestyle and nutrition

The North American porcupine is distributed in the forested regions of North America from Alaska to northern Mexico. It can be found in many landscapes - from tundra to semi-desert, although it prefers coniferous and aspen forests. In different areas, porcupines can live both mainly in trees and in dens, climbing trees only for feeding. How much time they spend on the ground depends on the number of predators and the density of "edible" ground vegetation in the area. The way of life is mostly solitary, although in winter porcupines sometimes settle in several individuals in one shelter and feed in groups of up to 20 individuals. It is active all year round, at night.

It feeds on all kinds of plant foods - bark, acorns and nuts, young leaves, herbs and, especially willingly, apples. Often for several days it gnaws on the same tree (for example, sugar maple). He loves salt very much.

The North American porcupine has a very peculiar defense system. In case of danger, he first of all seeks to climb a tree. If this is not possible, the North American porcupine assumes a defensive posture - threateningly raises its quills and begins to beat from side to side with its powerful and strong tail, simultaneously snapping its teeth. Raised needles sit loosely - this allows the porcupine to quickly free itself if the predator nevertheless attacks. Few predators risk "messing" with a porcupine; it is primarily preyed upon by ilka, wolverine and cougar. When attacking a porcupine, they tend to knock it over on its back in order to cling to its unprotected belly.

Porcupine needles are covered with specific fatty acids, and their concentration is higher in summer than in winter. Approximately half is palmitic acid, other components include palmitoleic, isopalmitic, oleic; 10 more components account for about 5% of the mass of the fraction. All of them have antibacterial properties. Most likely, this is due to the fact that the beast is very fond of climbing trees, and it happens that it can fall and get seriously injured from its own weapons. The germicidal lubricant thus protects it from infections in such cases.

reproduction

The mating season is in October-November. Females at this time make high, falsetto sounds, calling males. Porcupines are polygamous, the male takes turns mating with several females. After 210 days of pregnancy, in April-June, the female gives birth to a single cub - well developed, sighted and large. The weight of the newborn is 400-500 g. Half an hour after the birth, the needles harden in him. From the first day of life, he follows his mother and shows all the typical defensive reactions well. Milk feeding is repeated frequently. When feeding, the female sits down, leaning on her thighs and tail. The female and cub usually meet only at night, during the day he hides on the ground while she sleeps on a tree. An independent cub becomes on the 5th month. Females reach puberty on the 25th, males - on the 29th month.

The porcupine lives up to 18, but in nature, on average, up to 6 years, due to grinding of teeth.

Economic importance

The animal does not cause significant harm. Gnawing the bark of trees, including some fruit and ornamental ones. In search of salt in winter, he gets out on roads sprinkled with anti-icing salt; can gnaw on unattended wooden-handled tools, boat oars, saddles, car tires.

American Indians used porcupine meat as food, and quills were used to decorate hunting bags, moccasins, and other items.