Roof Rats Have Separate Colonies

The easiest way to quickly distinguish a roof rat from a norway rat other than the smaller size is that a roof rat s tail is very long.

Roof rats have separate colonies.

Both can mate and rapidly multiply causing an overpopulation of rats that can cause a health and safety issue for the people and animals that are surrounded by them. If you were to pull the tail back over the body the roof rat s tail would extend past its snout. The female roof rat has ten mammary glands. Rattus rattus is black to slate colored on both back and belly.

If you suspect you have rat activity in or around your home you may be concerned about rat habitats. Roof rats have soft and smooth fur that is typically brown with intermixed spots of black. Roof rats are long and thin rodents that have large eyes and ears a pointed nose and a scaly tail. Roof rats rattus rattus also known as black rats are small typically dark gray rodents.

Roof rats weight 4 to 12 ounces and are 13 3 4 to 17 3 4 from the tip of nose to end of tail. Their undersides are often white gray or black. However the two most common types found in the united states are the norway rat and the roof rat. Adult roof rats measure 6 8 16 20 cm when combining their head and body length.

Where rats live rats habitat will vary depending on both their species and on rural or country setting. The key difference is that roof rats live and nest in high places while norway rats live and nest in colonies that are at or below ground level. They have no notch on inside of their upper front teeth. The color of the roof rat varies depending on the sub species and is as follows.