Common Name: Norway/Brown/House/Wharf/Sewer Rat
Scientific Name: Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout)
Class/Order/Family: Mammalia/Rodentia/Muridae
Introduction: The Norway rat is the largest of the commensal rodents and the most common commensal rat in the temperate regions of the world. It not only damages/destroys materials by gnawing, eats and contaminates stored food, but it is also of human health importance as a vector or carrier of diseases. It is thought to be of central Asian origin, but is now of worldwide distribution and found throughout the United States.
Recognition: Adult with combined head and body length 7-9.5; (18-25 cm), tail length 6-8" (15-21 cm), usual weight about 7-18 oz (200-500 g) but up to 20.5 oz (620 g). Fur coarse, shaggy, brown with scattered black hairs, with underside grey to yellowish white. With muzzle blunt, eyes small, ears small (do not reach eyes) and densely covered with short hairs. Heavy bodied. With scaly tail bicolored (darker above), shorter than head and body combined. Adult droppings up to 3/4" (20 mm) long, capsule-shaped, and with blunt ends.