We Provide Rat and Mouse Trapping, Removal and Damage Repair Services
throughout New Jersey and Staten Island, NY

Norway Rat (Rattus Norvegicus)

Norway Rat Rattus Norvegicus

The brown rat, common rat, Norway rat, Norwegian rat or wharf rat (Rattus norvegicus) is one of the best-known and common rats, and also one of the largest. It is not known for certain why it is named Rattus norvegicus (Norwegian rat) as it did not originate in Norway, but John Berkenhout, the author of the 1769 book "Outlines of the Natural History of Great Britain", is most likely responsible for the misnomer. Berkenhout gave the brown rat the binomial name Rattus norvegicus believing that the rat had migrated to England from Norwegian ships in 1728, although no brown rat had entered Norway at that time, instead coming from Denmark. Thought to have originated in northern China, this rodent has now spread to all continents (except Antarctica) and is the dominant rat in Europe and much of North America. It lives wherever humans live, particularly in urban areas. Selective breeding of Rattus norvegicus has produced the laboratory rat, an important model organism in biological research, as well as pet rats.

The fur is coarse and usually brown or dark grey, the underparts are lighter grey or brown. The length can be up to 25 cm (10 in.), with the tail a further 25 cm (the same as the body length). Adult body weight averages 350 g in males and about 250 g in females, but a very large individual can reach 500 g. Rats weighing over a kilogram are exceptional, and stories of rats as big as cats are exaggerations, or misidentifications of other rodents such as the coypu and muskrat. Brown rats have acute hearing and are sensitive to ultrasound, and also possess a very highly developed olfactory sense. Their average heart rate is 300 to 400 beats per minute, with a respiratory rate of around 100 per minute. Their vision is poor and they are unable to detect colour and are blind to long-wave light.

House Mouse (Mus musculus)

House Mouse Mus musculus

A mouse (plural mice) is a rodent that belongs to one of numerous species of small mammals. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (Mus musculus). It is found in nearly all countries and, like the laboratory mouse, serves as an important model organism in biology, and is also a popular pet. The American white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) and the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) also sometimes live in houses. These species of mice live commensally with humans.

Mice can be harmful pests, damaging and eating crops and spreading diseases through their parasites and feces. In the Western United States, breathing dust that has come in contact with mouse feces has been linked to the deadly hantavirus. The original motivation for the domestication of cats is thought to have been for their predation of mice and their relatives, the rats.

See Our Services - Rodent Control Section for Solutions