Porcupines are usually dark brown or black in color, with white highlights. They have a stocky body, a small face, short legs, and a short, thick tail. This species is the largest of the New World porcupines and is the second largest North American rodent, after the American beaver. The porcupine possesses antibiotics in its skin which may help prevent infection when a porcupine falls out of a tree and is stuck with its own quills upon hitting the ground. An adult porcupine has about 30,000 quills that cover all of its body except its underbelly, face, and feet. Quills are modified hairs formed into sharp, barbed, hollow spines. North American porcupines have a relatively long life expectancy, with some individuals reaching 30 years of age.

North American porcupines are native to the coniferous and mixed-forest habitats of Canada, the northeastern and western regions of the United States and northern Mexico. Besides forests, porcupines can also be found in grasslands, desert shrub communities and even tundra. The name porcupine is derived from a French word meaning “thorny hog.” The porcupine is a herbivore that eats leaves, twigs, bark and green plants like skunk cabbage and clover. Porcupines climb trees or forage on the ground for food. The porcupine’s latin name, Erethizon dorsatum means “quill pig.”