It s usually easy to tell them apart from roof rats especially by the shape of their droppings which are not only capsule shaped but also much larger than those of roof rats.
Roof rat vs wood rat.
Female roof rats have 10 teats norway rats have heavy thick bodies blunt muzzles and small close set ears.
Additionally the roof rat.
There is a third type of rat the woodrat that you might find in the southwest but it is rarely a problem for humans.
How might you compare a roof rat vs.
Their 6 inch to 8 1 2 inch tails are dark on top with lighter undersides.
Roof rats are long and thin rodents that have large eyes and ears a pointed nose and a scaly tail.
Facts about rats roof rat or black rat.
Roof rats are not as common as norway rats.
The species found in arizona is the white throat wood rat also known as woodrat and new world rat.
Also called the black rat ship rat or old english rat the roof rat measures 6 8 inches long and has a tail that s slightly longer than its body.
There are over 20 species of pack rats from the arctic to central america.
There are several distinguishing characteristics.
Roof rats have soft and smooth fur that is typically brown with intermixed spots of black.
But after its dna was indexed alongside other rats in the eastern woodrat species it was discovered that the allegheny woodrat is indeed a species of its own.
Adult roof rats measure about eight inches in length while norway rats can be up to ten inches long.
Adult roof rats measure 6 8 16 20 cm when combining their head and body length.
Roof rats got their name because of the fact that these rodents are natural climbers that prefer to build their nests in high up locations such as in eaves or attic rafters.
Color is an easy way to identify roof rats vs.
The adult roof rat is about 7 10 inches long and weighs about 5 9 ounces.
Inspecting roof rat.
Conspicuously shorter than their combined head and body their tails are carried with comparatively less movement than roof rats.
This rat prefers the inland areas of the northeastern united states.
Another way to differentiate between the two rodents is size.
Pack rats on the other hand are not considered true rats as they belong to the neotoma genus they are a different species.
Roof rats have black fur with pale underbellies while norway rats have brownish gray coats.
The fur of roof rat is smooth while the fur of the norway rat is rough and shaggy.
If you pull the tail back over the body it will reach over its head.
The allegheny woodrat was once thought to be a subspecies of the eastern woodrat.
Roof rats in texas.
Roof rats rattus rattus are most likely to be found nesting in attics and other high up places such as ceilings tall cabinets and the inside of walls.
Their undersides are often white gray or black.
