David Element
Wildlife
Photography and Digital Video Images
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Mammals
49 – Brown Rats
BROWN or NORWAY RAT Rattus
norvegicus
BROWN or NORWAY RAT Rattus
norvegicus
BROWN or NORWAY RAT Rattus
norvegicus
BROWN or NORWAY RAT Rattus norvegicus
- The Brown
or Norway Rat Rattus norvegicus is a ubiquitous mammal, and
it has been tremendously successful in either wild or commensal situations
and the species appears to side-track almost every attempt at population
regulation or eradication. Unfortunately, efforts to kill them using
persistent poisons are often poorly regulated, meaning that they may be
taken by predators when dying, and therefore putting those animals higher
up the food-chain that would help to naturally control them at risk of
death. If poison is used then it is the responsibility of those using it
to clear up afterwards, meaning that any dead rodents should be wrapped in
foil and disposed of, not left where they may be taken by carrion-eaters.
Brown Rats are intelligent, animated, rather resourceful, and
famously fecund creatures and they are entertaining and challenging
subjects to film. They are also excellent swimmers, as evidenced by the
first photograph, and many 'sightings' of European Water Voles Arvicola
amphibius are probably misidentifications of this species. Rats are also unwitting vectors of leptospirosis,
Leptospira being the causative organism of Wiel’s Disease, a rare, but potentially
life-threatening bacterial infection carried in their urine.
The risks may be mitigated by wearing protective clothing when working or
participating in leisure pursuits in rivers or on riverbanks, and by
keeping all open cuts covered. Many parents allow their children to enter
rivers or play on their banks with apparent unawareness of this threat to
their health at a time when antibiotic resistance is becoming a serious
issue. There is often also a risk from hidden broken glass, so wearing
robust footwear is really a minimum requirement. Safer still, is to enjoy
rivers by watching them rather than entering the water.
- Two
films illustrating the behaviour of Brown Rats may be seen at:
https://youtu.be/6hqZNZWUG5o and https://youtu.be/0ksjb6mha4Y.
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