Just a *little* different...

[kelliem]

I guess this could be construed as a spoiler for tonight's episode of Bones, so just in case I am putting it behind a cut, though it's an extremely minor spoiler (imho) and really just mostly a gripe.
On Bones tonight one of the things that led them to crack the case was "muskrat hair." Only as they talked about said muskrat hair (has a two-layered coat, it was dyed with a special process in Canada, etc.) I suddenly realized that they weren't talking about muskrat hair, they were talking about muskox hair (aka qiviut).

They were only off a little bit. Like... most of a continent, several hundred pounds, and and entire species.

Comments

Bones & Muskrat

[taverymate.livejournal.com]

Not sure why you are thinking it must be muskox rather than muskrat?

Muskrats do, indeed, have a two-layered coat that is virtually waterproof, which makes sense when you consider their habitat and behavior. Muskrat pelt is considered a good choice for various clothing and fashion accessories as the skin makes an excellent leather and the fur is very durable. The fact that the fur is nearly waterproof means that is a good choice for jacket and hat trim. Also, the use of muskrat fur is not uncommon given that muskrat are found in large numbers over a wide range and are frequently hunted as nuisance pests.

Re: Bones & Muskrat

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

I guess the main reason I thought it is that I know that qiviut is extremely expensive and thus it would make sense to find it on a luxury item as the coat in question was supposed to be. I can see a rich person buying something made with muskox hair. I think they would be less inclined to buy something made with muskrat hair, since, as you say they are known as nuisance pests and there's not a lot of value associated with them. The idea of wearing rat fur isn't exactly appealing, even if it is muskrat. :)

Re: Bones & Muskrat

[taverymate.livejournal.com]

I only caught bits and pieces of Bones, so I could easily have missed something important, but in the brief glimpses I caught of the jacket, it had a trim which definitely looked like fur, not wool.

And if I remember correctly from my dS research days, the muskox coat is used to produce a fiber similar to sheep's wool and is used in hats and scarves. On the other hand, muskrat fur is frequently used as trim and their winter coats are said to be similiar in appearance to mink. And while a rich person might balk at buying "rat fur" it's doubtful that they'd ever know what the fur trim was since it's common for lesser fur to be used even in expensive items if it can pass visual muster (e.g. dyed rabbit fur).

Given that the jacket had fur trim, I think the muskrat was probably correct. Now if it had been a scarf, muskox might have been more likely.

And (in a nod to Fraser, since he was full of obscure trivia), muskrat fur is also used by some fly fisherman who tie their own flies.

Re: Bones & Muskrat

[kelliem.livejournal.com]

I bow to your superior knowledge. :)