Best 5 Facts About Rats And Rodents

Best 5 Facts About Rats And Rodents

Rats are highly adapted for dry conditions.  Having evolved in the deserts of Asia the rat has several adaptations which help it survive arid environments.  They have very salty middles to their kidneys which draw as much water out of their urine as possible.  This concentrates it and saves water for other uses in the body.  They don't sweat and cool themselves down by dilating the blood vessels in their tails.

Romans.  The ancient Romans had no separate words for rats and mice instead calling them 'mus maximus' and 'mus minimus'; big mouse and little mouse.

Rats are excellent swimmers.  They can survive being flushed down the toilet and can even re-enter a building via the same tube.

The Isle Of Man.  The word 'rat' is taboo in the Isle Of Man.  It is also an expletive in several other countries in the world and this may be because of rat's negative association with disease.  This could also be the root of many people's fear of them.

Disease.  Rats spread over 35 diseases in their urine, faeces and saliva.  This includes plague, haemorrhagic fever and Weil's disease.  The Black Death was caused by plague and killed between 75 and 200 million people in the 14th century.