Where Do Nutrias Actually Live in the US?
Nutrias live in 15 US states and are confirmed absent from 17 more, based on 10,210 verified iNaturalist and GBIF records. This page covers every state at once instead of one near-identical page per state.
By Tim, founder of Easy Street Markets. I maintain the wildlife database and verify every animal and source myself.
The states with the strongest confirmed populations are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia and Louisiana, and 9 more. These are real, verified iNaturalist and GBIF occurrence records, not modeled range estimates.
Nutrias have zero confirmed wild sightings in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan and Nebraska, or 7 other states, despite tens of thousands of nationwide observation records for the species. That is a real, checked absence, not a missing page.
Confirmed states (15)
Not found (17)
- Alaska
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Michigan
- Nebraska
- New Jersey
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Vermont
- Wisconsin
Frequently asked questions
What states do nutrias live in?+
Nutrias have confirmed wild populations in 15 US states: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington.
Where are nutrias not found in the US?+
Nutrias have no confirmed wild sightings in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont and Wisconsin.
Full nutrias guides by state