Federal officials say destructive nutria have been found in Delaware.
The rodents, which were once farmed for their fur, feed on wetland plants and have led to the loss of thousands of acres of marsh to erosion throughout the Chesapeake Bay. They are believed to have escaped or been released in the 1940s from fur farms in Maryland, where they have established a wild population.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Wednesday that an alert fur buyer noticed a pelt was from a nutria. Federal officials say although isolated reports have been received, the recent discovery in a Marydel pond is the first confirmed population found in Delaware since 2002.
State and federal officials say they now plan to work on a strategy to remove nutria from Delaware.
