Rats
Feeding rats at Osnabrück Zoo
Video: Hamsterkiste
1 House Rats and Brown Rats
Brown rat at a bird feeder
Image: Losch, Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3975012
There are 65 different species of rat worldwide. Two species are found mainly in our area: black rats and brown rats. Black rats prefer high-up spaces, such as attics. They have become rare. Brown rats like to live underground, in burrows or sewers. They are common, especially where they can find plenty of people’s food waste. Rats can also live in animal sheds, cellars, zoos, parks, slaughterhouses, rubbish dumps and grain stores.
The brown rat is slightly larger than the black rat. It can grow to a body length of 20 to 27 cm, while the black rat is about 16 to 22 cm long. Rats’ tails can measure up to 32 cm. Rats weigh about 250 grams, but can weigh as much as 500 grams. Their fur is gray, gray-brown, or brown.
Find out:
- How many species of rats are there on Earth?
- Which ones are common here?
- Where do rats live around here?
- How long do rats grow, and how much do they weigh?
- Where do rats often find plenty of food?
2 Rats are clever and shy
Brown rats at Osnabrück Zoo
Image: Hamsterkiste
Rats are omnivores. They prefer plant-based food, but they also eat carrion and, in rare cases, kill young ducks or chicks. Brown rats often look for places where food scraps can be found. These include, for example, unlocked trash cans or food scraps that we simply throw away. The sewer system is a feast for brown rats: they feed on what we flush down the toilet. Rats can enter basements or living spaces through wastewater pipes.
An adult female rat can give birth to an average of 8 pups at a time, up to six times a year—around 50 young rats in total. The pups can reproduce themselves after 2 months. Wild brown rats usually live no longer than 1 year, and at most 3 years.
Brown rats are shy. You rarely see them, as they are mostly active in the dark. Rats often move along walls and fences. They run away when they sense danger. But if they’re cornered, they can bite and jump up to 1.5 m high. Brown rats can swim and are excellent climbers.
Find out:
6. What do rats eat?
7. How many young can a female rat give birth to?
8. How do rats behave when they are in danger?
3 Rats can spread diseases
Plague in Marseille, 1720, painting by Michel Serre
Image: public domain
Rats are actually clean animals and spend a lot of time grooming their fur. Yet many people find rats disgusting and are afraid of them. This is probably because rats played a role in the spread of the plague. The plague is a terrible disease that causes lumps to appear all over the skin and was often fatal in the past. When the plague broke out in a city, a large part of the population died within a few days.
This disease is caused by a bacterium called Yersinia pestis. The rat flea transmits this bacterium to humans, and rats spread these fleas. Rats can also transmit other diseases to humans and cause epidemics among livestock. Because they often live in the dirty underground of our cities, they can spread many pathogens.
Rats are hunted and killed by dogs and cats. Martens, weasels and polecats prey on them too, as do birds of prey such as buzzards and owls. It is important for people to keep anything rats might eat securely stored away. If you discover a rat infestation, contact a pest control professional immediately. They will know how to get rid of the rats and prevent them from returning.
Find out:
9. Which disease was often spread by rats in the Middle Ages?
10. Which animals prey on rats?