Spotted rats?
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A rat can simultaneously act as a pest for storage, materials and health. Therefore, it is essential to know the most critical rat species since a rat such as the brown rat is not infrequently confused with house mouse, vole/muskrat or marten. Therefore, we tell you which rat species you should know in Germany and clarify, with the help of photos and pictures, how the appearance of the essential rat species differs.
The rat belongs to rodents (Rodentia) and the family of mice (Muridae). The rat is a brilliant animal endowed with a strong survival instinct and is characterised by an extremely high reproduction rate.
Although the rat genus includes around 500 different rat species worldwide, two main species are feared pests in Germany: the brown rat and the rarer house rat.
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In contrast to the two rat species, brown rat and house rat, the house mouse is also the same subfamily, Murinae. Still, a significantly smaller rodent, easily distinguished from the rat on closer inspection.
The vole or water vole or the muskrat subspecies as the largest vole species, like the brown rat, also live in earthworks. Still, they represent a separate family within rodents (Arvicolidae), which differ in size and appearance and lifestyle clearly distinguish.
The marten is a dog-like predator found as a carnivore, just like the house rat in attics but readily distinguished from the rat by its shape and size alone.
(Rattus rattus)
(Rattus norvegicus)