Things you need to know about BROWN RATS!
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- čas přidán 18. 05. 2024
- Where do Brown Rats come from, what do Brown Rats eat, how long can Brown Rats live for, where Brown Rats nest or any other facts about Brown Rats? You'll find all of these facts and more in the Brown Rat fact-file.
If you would like to see some more British wildlife, visit Naturally Curious UK and say hello to Graham who provided some of the footage for this video: / themisterg777
Here is the script I wrote and used for this video:
Brown rats are one of the most successful mammals on the planet and have lived alongside humans for thousands of years but it may be surprising to hear that didn’t arrive in the UK until the 1700s when its suspected they stowed away on ships from Russia. They gradually colonised the countryside, towns and cities displacing the already present black rat as they went.
As their name suggests, brown rats have an overall greyish brown appearance with a long hairless and scaly looking tail. They have large bare ears, black beady eyes and a pointed nose. They usually weight between 2 and 300 grams and measure around 20cm from their nose to the base of their tail, however, sometimes they can grow very large with some reaching more than 600 grams and having bodies of upto 30cm long.
Brown rats can live in any habitat where they can find something to eat, and as their diet is extensive that means they can be found pretty much everywhere. They will eat everything from human scarps and waste, other animal food, eggs, birds, amphibians, grain and vegetables. Some rats have even become immune to the poisons that people try to put out for them and can eat it without any lasting negative affects.
Male brown rats are called bucks whilst females are called does. They often live in large colonies with a defined hierarchical structure with some bucks and does being more dominant than others. These colonies mainly live in underground burrows which they dig themselves but where they live in towns and cities the colonies can also be found in abandoned buildings, cellars, sewers and attics.
Alongside their extensive diets there is a second reason that brown rats have been so successful at colonising the planet, their reproduction. Each doe can start breeding from just 3 months of age and can produce 5 litters in a year with as many as 12 pups being born at a time. This breeding can take place at any time throughout the year but reaches a peak in the late spring and summer. Each doe may mate with several bucks multiple times but given the dominant bucks are more likely to be the fittest, they are also the most likely to be the fathers of any pups that are born. The does are only pregnant for 21 days before they give birth to their hairless and blind young in a well hidden nest. She takes care of these young without any help and will move them from one nest to another if she thinks they are in any danger. The pups grow really fast and by just three weeks of age they are weaned from their mothers milk and from four weeks onwards they can be fully independent.
Brown rats are not a species without controversy, millions of pounds is spent every year in the UK in an attempt to control this species and they are disliked by a lot of people. However they are also loved by lots of people. This is partly due to their intelligence and tenacity. Being social they can communicate with each other through a series of squeaks, grunts and hisses and their domesticated cousins make excellent pets. They can be trained to follow commands and in the wild are capable of problem solving beyond the capacity of most other animals.
Aside from the direct conflict brown rats have with people, they also face other dangers living amongst us. They often fall victim to predation by cats and die from collisions with cars. They also have natural predators such as birds of prey, foxes and otters. The average life expectancy for a rat in the wild is less than one year but in exceptional instances they can survive as much as three years and one domesticated animals made it to a whopping 7 years and 4 months of age. Population estimates for brown rats in the UK vary massively but there is thought to be around 80 million of them living here and some studies show that their numbers are rising.
Some of the footage and images used in this video were obtained using creative commons licences, the originals and their licences can be found at:
• Young Brown Rat feedin...
• Brown rats eat food fo...
• Brown rats at RSPB Rai...
• Video
• RATA PARDA (Rattus nor...
• RATS EVERYWHERE
www.flickr.com/photos/funadiu...
www.piqsels.com/en/search?q=r...
Thumbnail: www.geograph.org.uk/photo/548...
#britishwildlife
#nature
#wildlife
The most amazing sight was watching a swarm of thousands crossing a field heading for their winter quarters an old disused quarry filled with tons and tons of rubbish it was just at dusk and it was quite an eerie experience but one I will never forget
I had a similar experience. I saw a constant stream of wild rats running along a railway wall, into a pub dumpster and back out again. They ranged from mouse-like to nearly cat-sized! The size range was remarkable as well as the rats' carefully co-ordinated movements.
Rats thrive with a large group of compatriots to forage and play with!
I've got a few brown rats that live below my lounge window. I put food on the window for them everyday and now they come for their food when I tap on the window.
Here in Burry Port, West Wales, when I was a boy of about seven or eight and the old wooden lock gates that kept seawater in the west dock were still standing, brown rats quite literally the size of small terriers nested there. They were so large, that when swimming, they left a noticeable wake behind them when the water wasn't windblown. I've never seen rats of that size since, despite having seen many rats during the last 56 years. Sadly, a former neighbour of mine died of Weil's disease, caught in the small river near to my home today, where he was employed by the local council to keep it free of driftwood etc. In my mother's house, rats had actually chewed through from an outer wall into an area where dog and cat food was stored. These animals are very tenacious and admirable in many ways but are cursed by their propensity for damage and terrible health consequences.
Beautiful! I love how athletic and smart they are.
Love them or hate them , they are actually the waste disposal experts of the animal Kingdom.
They’re extremely invasive and caused the extinction of numerous species
When I was in the army, there were rats as big as flaming cats in the Quartermaster's store
Lovely work. Absolutely nothing wrong with rats. I watch them in my garden happily eating side by side with pigeons and black birds. One of most impressive sights was one night when I saw one climbing up, then slithering down a slim tree right outside my window. He stopped and we were looking at each other for some time. I was really impressed with how healthy they are. Sleek, clean and in excellent health. It was keeping pet Chipmunks that opened me up to the beauty of rats as a fellow rodent. Incidentally, chipmunks have got to amongst the longest living small rodents about. My current ones are now 9 years old, my oldest have lived for eleven and half years. Like rats, they are extremely resilient and strong. Recovering from broken legs , large falls and all manner of injuries as they run freely around my house.
"Absolutely nothing wrong with rats" You would change your tune if a colony set up camp around your buildings. They chew holes in everything and burn buildings down by chewing electric wires. Like the man said one female can produce 60 young in a year. The young begin having their own babies in 3 months. It's simple math to find out in not many years you can have thousands swarming your and the neighbours yards. Along with destruction there are also the diseases they spread.
@@billastell3753
I absolutely agree with you Mr Astell. They can be the most destructive, and filthy of creatures too. Both bold and aggressive. Luckily, my experiences with rats has been a positive one. I’m not an airy fairy animal lover that can’t see the opposite side of this situation. Looking at YOUR experience…. I would say kill the little buggers. 👍
until you get them inside your house breeding then good luck
I’d disagree. I love watching them but I shoot them whenever they come in my garden because they decimate song birds
Hell Nah, I enjoy hearing them cry out in pain when they get trapped
Excellent factual video about these remarkable animals. Glad my footage was useful, and many thanks for the credit and promo. Cheers buddy! 👍🙂👍
brown rat (Rattus norvegicus)
I was host to one for some weeks. It was caught by my cat and escaped into the bathroom where I let it stay so I could watch it’s behaviour. I fed it several things, and off course I cleaned it’s litter. My Washingmachine was in there too and the day I found three pieces of Bread in the soapcompartement, I decided it was time for my guest to move one. It took two days before it found the way into the garden. It was quite interesting, and I can say they are quite friendly but avoiding people by nature when alone. And they are squatters to, even a washingmachine is habitable to them...
The brown rat has saved the lives of more humans than any other animal in human history - by displacing the plague-carrying black rat.
I see my fair share of these fellas being a binman 😅 I don't mind them, but they can make me jump when a dozen jump out the same bin. This happens more during the winter I guess they see wheelie bins as 5 star hotels.
@Transplanted1 that's quite a story 😂
Yeah I'd say we'd get on an average about a dozen a day around town and their just the ones we can see. 👀
Poisoning rats is the worst thing people can do since they form an important part of the diets of many birds and small predatory mammals.
Rats become immune to the poison, but the animals who keep them naturally in check don't adapt so well, and this means they die from ingesting poisoned rats.
Poisoning is not an effective method of controlling rat populations, and it's far better to maintain woodlands, keep food litter off the streets, and encourage local environments that are welcoming to owls and other small raptors.
Love this channel, very informative
Another informative and interesting video,thanks.
Thank you Liam,
For another well researched video
Much obliged and best of luck too you
I have two rats that I watch on cctv at night in my garden. they're so fun to watch, I couldn't think of harming them. Such lovely creatures, it's just a shame they breed so rapidly. I think that's mainly what people don't like about them.
I love people like you I couldn’t kill a rat either or anything living infact
I shoot rats in the allotment. Just to keep them down. All shots are direct hits. They are fun to watch. Amazing animals. Shame they get out of control fast.
They're a menace, they spread all kinds of filthy diseases
I have a couple (or 3 or 4 😆) in my garden too. I think they're cute, people complain about rats all the time but they clean up after the birds! I don't have a problem with them at all.
Awesome footage and interesting video as always :-)
Excellent informative video Liam,,
they are so cute!! amazing video :)
Absolutely fascinating!
Really nice video. Thank you.
Thanks, interesting video!
we have a brown rat that lives in next door's garden , he is very cheeky and steal the birds food
They are very cunning!
Brown rats worst mistake was getting a bad press agent. Lovely animals, intelligent, and affectionate. Useful too
what good do they do
They spread disease.
Brilliant video Liam, and very informative, especially about them being resist now to some poison,s to cull them,,
excellent.
have a nice day
thanks for beautiful sharing
stay connected
I've had a number of fancy rats as pets over the yeas. I loved them, but their lives are so short. It's heart-breaking to lose one.
Yes it is I keep rats as pets I love both domestic and wildies
Rats are actually clean animals. They also seem to wee a lot as well. I had a friend who had several rats. The males in one cage females in another. W
Thanks Liam for this very informative video 😁👍🏽👍🏽
Thank you for informing about the possible size of a rat. I saw an enormous rat in Nice, France whilst on a school stay. My school friends and I were so scared. we ran back to our teacher.
Our teacher told us to shout and make as much noise as possible to scare the rat as we walked back to our dorm - I do not think it was particularly scared. It seemed to observe us with some amusement. Later on when I shared about the size of the rat no one believed me.
i love your videos steven
We had a few of these from local farmland which ran around our gardens scavenging from the bird feeders. None of us feed the birds anymore which is quite sad. We had to get the local council in to deal with the problem.
I hate rats but I love this channel Brilliant
They’re really good climbers, I saw one shimmying up the drainpipe on my house a few weeks back. Luckily I’ve not seen it since. Hopefully it’s living it’s best rat life in a field somewhere.
unless it is in your Roof.??.
Rats are cool animals super smart. I do take my jack Russell out to catch them but I do respect them. Nice video
My jack- mix is a good ratter too-even killed a few pet rats- but it isn't as cruel as poison, nor is it bad for other animals the way poison is...
@@deborahtoupin6800 yeah poisoning them is horrible
I own a pest control company in Los Angeles that specializes in Rodent control and this video was 100% accurate in its content, great job in presenting the facts….
Wow, rats in LA! Do they have them in Montecito?
@@petercutting6126 yes, very infested area, all of California is infested
@@ratfinder7812 Thanks for that RF. Then perhaps in UK, we should be worried about Megan Markle , Duchess of Sussex & her husband Prince Harry & 2 small children.
Maybe they will call you out?
@@petercutting6126 lol I have already worked on one her best friends homes here in Los Angeles. But yeah I hear you, what a disgrace embarrassment to the royal family
@@ratfinder7812 👍
My air rifle loves rats.
Quality input...
@@AShotOfWildlife Yep, the input of a .22 pellet into the head of a rat from a rifle.
It's a good video, I agree the are clever and industrious, but we back onto fields and have a huge rat issue. They spread disease, and basically destroyed my shed burrowing. I hate poison because it's quite ineffective and the raptors take the bodies getting it into the food chain. Humane control is an air rifle. I have shot ones with bodies longer than my foot and weigh a pound or more, crawling with fleas, lice and ticks. We have badgers, foxes, bunnies, hares, muntjacs come in to visit, but far too many rats.
@@black5f I've shot and killed them measured a lot of them with the help of a 9 inch house brick. Most nose to arse (not including tail) hang over the ends of the brick. They then get chucked over a fence into a railway embankment for whatever whildlife to eat them. They end up in the food chain but by a different route.
I'm a lover myself, ironically when I was younger I worked in pest control and developed a real administration for the adaptability of these amazing animals.
Yes, another person who used to do pest control told me of their admiration for them too. I guess you have to be pretty tenacious to survive where Rats have managed to!
@@AShotOfWildlife ah yes admiration you see what I was aiming for... take care my friend
@@hazzardoutdoors autocorrect or what l like to call 'autocorrupt' at work.
@@dexadrinepancake yes indeed. Something to make us constantly proof read, or feel the consequences 🤔
Fantastic video! Some females can actually start to reproduce as early as 5 weeks! It's more common in the domestica version (fancy rats, but the same species) because in the beginnings of breeding rats as domesticated animals we tried to breed for earlier reproduction
Rats can be a very big problem and I’ve had lots of trouble with them in the past, eating them chicken feed and eggs. Thankfully the cats and other local predators seem to be taking their toll and I haven’t seen or had any problems with rats this year
Nice work Son ❤
So for the past few months now ive being putting food out to attract brids to my garden. ive had such grate success to the point i can call them with a certain whistle tune i made up, however a byproduct to this has also being that the den of rats that have lived in a bush at the bottom of my garden for around 21 years (that i know of) have also learnt that the whistle means food, and now everytime i call a rat will run up the garden gab some food and go back. i think it's kinda adorable to be honest. we have notice more foxers and birds of pray too. oh and off topic those two eagles are seen alot flying over the feild by my home. i have a video but its not that good but you can still id them by the way they are flying, there was only one a few week ago but now two
How funny. I think, for the most part Rats arent too much of an issue as long as they dont come into the house. This shows how clever they are though and is exactly why they have managed to colonise the world so well!
Cheers!
@@AShotOfWildlife
Smarter than pets, it will monitor what items you use frequently. It knows that it cannot be eaten. It simply destroys or steals it to attract attention. The purpose is to trade food. After giving it food, it stops destroying items and returns them. little rogue😂
@@AShotOfWildlifewhoah ! They're destroying my garden
Shed, two wooden fences ,grab rails ( I'm disabled)
I have a problem with my stuff being destroyed
To the fact that I'm packing up and leaving - just like the last tenant did
If your garden is unusable - it's awful 😢
I get they can live under hedges / bushes etc
But once they've multiplied several times our gardens are doomed
Lots of the problems that people have with rats is down to people not thinking if you do not want rats in your garden the first thing to do is not to put food out for the birds if you have a bird table the first thing that birds tend to do it drop the food off the table. if you do not want the rats to come into your house then make shore that you block any ways that they can get in if you do this then you can live in peace with rats my moto in life is live and let live if they do not harm me I will not harm them.
My garden backs on to a railway line and a small river,. trust me, these little fuckers turn up in the garden when there is nothing for them to eat at all. Although sometimes i put peanut butter out for them and shoot them in the head. Luckily i've only had 2 coming into the garden in the last couple of years due to the rest dying of lead poisoning.
Ratatouille! 🤣
🤣👍 I love rats, and i love that movie! 🐀🐀🐀🥰
Squizitzi
i saw one climbing up a Hollyhock stalk once
Yep, i had a 500 gram female rat until 2 weeks ago when she passed away, one of my others is 650 grams now, but thats due to mammary tumours, my rat probably only weighs 325 grams, the other half is swollen lumps
female rats are unfortunately prone to mammary tumours
They're OK if they aren't in the house. I used peppermint oil to repel them, and it worked.
I’ve had rats in the house and up in the roof and cavity walls. No idea how they get in, been round everything sealing it up completely. Had to get rid of them but there’s more in the compost bin at the bottom of the garden They re fine,they stay! Smart animals and I’ve got nothing but respect for them.
The "buck" and "doe" names for tiny rats always makes me laugh a bit. All I picture are deer that are like 100x bigger than them xD
Great video. You can get rat food with contraceptives in them. It is only available in the USA. Does anyone know of something similar in the UK? I havent been able to find anything.
Recognised some of the footage as being taken at RSPB Rainham. Got some good pictures there myself.
Aweosmo footage and nice subject
Couldn't we feed them food that include compounds to sterilize them?
I love rats ❤️
I love the ears!
My girl is big.
They also carry numerous diseases such as Leptospirosis, Weils disease, Salmonella, Listeria, Toxoplasma the list goes on. If I see these in my garden I dispatch them quickly with my air rifle.
Weil's disease, is, of course, rodent leptospirosis.
They're on my bird feeder with the birds plus a squirrel 😂only seen 2 so far 😬
I work in the english countryside and have always been under the impression that a doe rat can breed from only 4 weeks. Rats also eat each other 💀💀
I’ve had a trap go off and thought I didn’t catch one. But there was a jawbone left underneath the bar. Caught about four over that week A few nights later I could hear a lot of squealing and thumping like they were fighting. I expected to have caught one, but next day the trap is baited and unsprung. They were warning each other off!
Excellent vid. Informative and balanced. My fav animal is the brown rat😊
Cheers!
On my garden, the funniest thing was when I saw a rat running on a magpie and squirrels
I hate rats and it was hard for me to watch this video but thank you it was very informative
I hate rats too. And I feel the same It's hard for me to watch the video cuz I want to kill them. They carry tons of diseases filthy annoying and just gross. I have fantasies of hunting them with a 22 caliber rifle or a very strong pellet rifle. I have no sympathy for them as far as I'm concerned they all must die.
Rats are beautiful creatures very intelligent and clean I've kept them as pets 6 0 plus years I've even raised wildies
@@bilston-rav2432 Rattist.
@@mariabrett6712 exactly, best little pets ever !
@@mariabrett6712 maybe it's a domestic rats are clean but not the wild ones
white wine for brown rats, red wine for black.
The only thing i give rats, is a .22 lead pellet.
I got a smart rat running around in my attic but my landlord don't want it in the house lol I guess Master Splinter have to go back to his ninja turtles.
When I moved away from the city into the countryside I noticed the rats were almost twice the size! This year is the first year in more than 8 years where I have not seen any rat activity around my ducks and vegetables! Although I've caught 50+ mice this year! Usually never get mice only voles!
My dog loves them in a bad way tho he's so mean
You failed to explain what the 'scaly tail' actually performs., it is a 'heat exchange machine' allows for cooling & heat gathering by the animal's body. Rats also cannot sweat or vomit.
I don't mind them but now they are invading my home. I can hear them in the walls and they are loud! One built a nest under my dishwasher and ate parts of it so I had to get a new one and take special care by adding steel wool around the entry part. I doubt that will work. I won't use poison since bird of prey eat them. Any ideas on how I can get them to stay away from my house?
You Could Tell A Ghost Story Really Well.
I often see dozens of them down near the river. Occasionally I get them in my garden. I used to keep domestic rats, so I like seeing them.
I love rats too, had some pet rats years ago. It's sad they don't got very old, and often die of cancer.
My oldest rat was a very big female, she was about 4 years when she died.
@@rattus3102 yes it is sad they don't live long: that's the main reason I stopped keeping them. Nearly all mine had large tumors and had to be put to sleep by the vet. It's been 30 years or more since I kept them, but I still have all the equipment.
@@baldyhead That was also the reason for me not to keep rats anymore. I had the tumors removed from 2 of my rats, one died after coming out of anesthesia, the other got some kind of stroke afterwards. 😥 So surgery was not such a good option. I had to put almost all the others to sleep at the vet, when their tumors got too big.
It's really a shame because they are such sweet and intelligent pets! 🐀🐀🐀🥰
You are welcome to the ones in my garden!
They terrify me!
@@swansong5263 they are very timid will not hurt you
Hi Liam, good for you for counting brown rats as British wildlife, which they are and not pests -- pests is a human concept. Yes, they're controversial because they aren't understood. And humans are the most controversial, by far! We have (my wife and I) been keeping domesticated pet rats for over 25 years and they are indeed very intelligent! They can easily be trained to do a good number of things, like skateboarding and painting. Shout-out to all the rat fans out there!
Cheers.
👍
They. Are good moving targets,,,,,?
Great animals. I think people judge these fellas too quickly. I encountered a mother with babies and I think they are intelligent animals. Apparently they are more intelligent than humans. Let's respect them. Great video 🌄
I asked one a question once, he didn't answer, so perhaps not.
“more intelligent than humans “ ? Where’s this come from , please ?
Never heard this before . Intelligent… yes , definitely .They really need to be thoroughly studied in a scientific manner .
I found and picked up a small young one in my garden ….the size of a mouse .
He was so playful and after a little handling appeared to smile with glee when I stroked his belly ! He even returned to my hand when placed back on the ground and showed a great deal of trust .
Theres a rat hole on a patch of grass area directly next to my house. People dump food scraps there all the time and the rats scurry out to eat the food hidden among the accompanying pigeons 🤢
Am totally fed up of the all the negativity and abhorrence people have towards these magnificent and very underrated snd misunderstood lovely crestures, wish humans were more educated and less stupid.
More rats than people in the UK, crazy.
Сладкие носы) ❤
I have 10 wild roof rats as pets. i rescued them when they were babies.
@0:30, I don’t know, but the brown rat, and the black rat, occupy totally different habitats.
My cat brings home rat presents.
Can you make longer. Videos there over to quick
👍
I just smashed one with a shovel 👍😁
are they being kept in labs?
We have rats in our garden & there is more of them , they are so cute ,one day Danny ( he was the only one then ) the name from Danny who was the tunnel king from The Great Escape film ) because he started to make tunnels 5 of them when we noticed 2020 on lock down , we did our back garden ,new shed ,plants , bird table ...then birds came & seed every were , he loved that ,then more rats etc ..so now i am thinking i have to stop feeding the birds ,squirrels because they throw seed all over & Danny & his mob love going mooching around even during the day ..i don't want them dead but next doors might not think of the same as me ...one day i went to the bottom were they can hide & i saw 3 or 4 they looked at me i looked at them ..then Danny stood behind them to show me his family ...he was so proud ..i wish i had a camera then to take their picture ...but i have to stop feeding any animal now which is so sad .
Back once more with a note re use of poison .As has been stated many are immune to poison (hope so ) However the accepted bird of prey and any rat haters cats will not feel better for eating poison should they kill a rat that has survived the consumption . Rats are very shy re humans ( I wonder why ) They live near by with a flock of sparrows No killing Help act as look outs ...They are related to that much loved animal the squirrel ,interesting to see how a fluffy tail works wonders :)
They look like beavers in the water. Beavers are a modified rat actually.
What is their most common nesting place?
With the help of an air rifle that would be erm..........hell.
Usually under ground or in buildings
Under my shed.
Nice video, used to find rats 🐀 creepy something about the tail lol, i' m fine now they very robust animal
I think rats are really intresting.. My fiance caught one once,she kept it for a day or two & fed it then released it..they are like mini kangaroos 🤣😂🤣😂..
They are really intresting..we have got quite a few where we live..
They usually run for the senate or congress………
I live in a pleasant suburban area and my cat is a great ratter. He prefers young ones which he eats whole, but I did once find the front half of a huge adult which from a distance I took for an adult grey squirrel. I only realised it was a rat when I got close enough to see the head.
I have 2 fancy rats the broen one weighs 1 kg
I'm always a bit confused that nature would evolve an animal to being intelligent but that only lives for a year
What's the point?
It breeds five times and will produce 60 young. That’s the point.
@@highdownmartin that explains it lol
shame the poor rat can't live a bit longer tho
They are intelligence beasts, but prefer not to have them in my area
Jacq
I think it is the association with bubonic plague that makes people recoil so much from rats.
I once did exactly that after I put my hand in a litter bin and felt a rat in there, but in reality it was no threat to me at all.
😲😰
In behavioural experiments with rats it has been demonstrated that they are one of the few species on the planet that show empathy towards each other.
I have a dilema. I always feed the wild birds and hedgehogs in my garden, but now have rats. Whilst i think they are kind of cute looking, they also freak me out. There is no way i could ever poison them or harm them, but my house is up for sale and i really just want them to move on. Obviously i know i need to stop feeding the birds & hedgehogs now, but is there anything else i can do?
I have them in my garden I feed them every night under my window they have never attempted to come in the house even though they pass an open patio door to come to their feeding place at all in all the same family of rats has been living in my garden visiting me for the last 47 years without any problems
they are ever so nice ?
I don't think I said that in the video lol
I had a berkshire Rat lived for 6 years 4 months chicolate chip she was the best 💘 rip cholate chip
I hate rats, they're so destructive animals.
The irony of that statement being made by a human! 🤣🤣
🤔WUNDERVOLLE TIERE, ICH LIEBE EUCH..... RATTEN👍❣️❣️❣️❣️ LGheike_v.P.....🌹