University Of Arizona Roof Rats

Roof rats like to nest in oleanders in the summer.

University of arizona roof rats. Roof rats can travel in many different ways to new homes. Head and body 7 8 inches. Wood rat pack rat cotton rat. Roof rat black rat ship rat norway rat.

Roof rats nest in the skirts of old palm fronds in piles of debris and in hollow trees. Thin out bushes so you can see daylight through them. Spp or cotton rat sigmodon arizonae. The most significant behavioral difference.

Like most rodents roof rats are most active at dawn and dusk and try to avoid movement during the light and heat of the day. Table 1 provides a brief description of the physical similarities and differences among these rodents. First appearing in phoenix in 2001 roof rats are relatively new to arizona. What is a roof rat.

Head and body 8 10 inches. About as long as head and body combined 5 8 inches. Ecology behavior of roof rats like norway rats and native rats roof rats are nocturnal active at night. The university of arizona cooperative extension 3 figure 2.

Phoenix arizona ground zero. Head and body 5 7 inches. Move roof rats that occasionally find their way into the sewer. The rat zapper should be placed close to a roof rat nest or in their runways said ernie henson president and owner of stormin norman termite and pest control.

The roof rat can appear similar to the norway rat native arizona pack rat neotoma. Roof rats rattus rattus sometimes called black rats fruit rats or house rats are aerial very agile climbers and usually live and nest above ground in shrubs trees and dense vegetation such as ivy. Roof rats can be cautious. Contact 602 262 6691 business hours on weekdays or 602 261 8000 afterhours and weekends to report roof rats in the citys sewer system.

Ecology of roof rats and native rats. Outside the home they eat plants tree bark and fruits. Roof rat smudge marks. According to the university of arizona aside from disease transmission roof rats eat and contaminate food chew on household wiring and tear up home insulation.

Traps are quickly set baited monitored and remain as long as rats continue to be captured. While casual observations of roof rats or native rats can. According to researchers at the university of arizona rats move 200 300 feet at night and are most active in the cooler months of the year.