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Rat Species

Rats are the most dominant species of rodents on earth, belonging to the Rattus genus of the family Muridae. There are several species of rats in the world. Most rodents are herbivorous, but some are omnivorous. In general, there are 2 basic rat types, specifically roof rats (black) and Norway rats (brown). Both are thought to have originated in Asia and are now widely distributed all over the planet.

Ship Rats

Roof rats (known as Rattus Rattus) are also called black rats and ship rats. These rats are normally black in color, slender, 16-21 cm long & weigh about 80-300 grams. Their tail is longer than the head & body and their nose & muzzle are pointed. They are called roof rats because they are climbers. Their paws are built to climb & make nestles in upper parts of homes, rafters, attics and crossbeams of buildings.

Brown Rat

The Norway rat is sometimes known as the house rat, brown rat, gray rat, barn rat or wharf rat. It is the larger of the 2 mentioned here, and one of the best-known species. Their scientific name is Rattus norvegicus. They are mostly grayish-brown, with a lighter colored stomach. A fully-grown brown rat is 18 to 26 cm long & weighs between 400 and 600 gm. Their nose & muzzle are blunt, and they have a tail shorter than its body. They prefer moist conditions & nest in deep burrows.

At around 3 – 4 months of age, these rats start to breed. They breed 1 to 13 times each year and produce 1 to 22 in each litter. Black rats & brown rats eat about the same things. Their diet mainly includes meats, seeds, nuts, grains, veggies, fruits, cereals and invertebrates. They consume about one-third of their weight in food every 24 hours.

They contaminate food, carry fatal diseases and damage structures. Some of the diseases potentially fatal to man that spread through rats are salmonella food poisoning, toxoplasmosis, Weil’s disease & plague.

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