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Wood rats are believed to have evolved this behavioral adaptation to cope with the environmental stresses posed by ectoparasites. [13] One study finds that a woodrat's maternal nest is an integral part of its nesting habits.
The eastern woodrat (Neotoma floridana), also known as the Florida woodrat or bush rat, is a pack rat native to the central and Eastern United States. It constructs large dens that may serve as nests for many generations and stores food in outlying caches for the winter. While widespread and not uncommon, it has declined or disappeared in ...
Active pack rat midden in northern Nevada. In the absence of rock crevices or caves, the dens are often built under trees or bushes. The pack rats will also use plant fragments, animal dung, and small rocks in building the den. The vast majority of the materials will be from a radius of several dozen yards of the nest.
Anatomy of the wood rat's forelimb (lateral aspect) Bushy-tailed woodrats can be identified by their large, rounded ears, and their long, bushy tails. They are usually brown, peppered with black hairs above with white undersides and feet. The top coloration may vary from buff to almost black.
Rock crevices appear preferred where available, but pack rats generally adapt to any situation. Wood rat (Neotoma lepida) midden. Woodrats construct houses for nesting, food caching, and predator escape. These can have up to six entrances and eight internal chambers, including both nests and food caches.
Houses and dens enclose a system of runways and chambers, including the white-throated woodrat's nest. [17] [36] The nest averages 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter and is composed of soft, fine material including grass, shredded prickly-pear fibers, or juniper bark. [7] [18]
These rats form small colonies with nesting areas, a network of underground runways and many conspicuous latrines. Latrines are large fecal piles the rats deposit on protected flat rocks. [6] In some cases, researchers have found dried leaves placed around the nesting area which appear to act as alarms to warn the rats of approaching danger. [9]
Groundhog gathering nesting material for its warm burrow Wood rat (Neotoma lepida) nest at Joshua Tree National Park. In rodents and lagomorphs, the nesting instinct is typically characterized by the urge to seek the lowest sheltered spot available; this is where these mammals give birth.
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