Allegheny woodrat Facts
Allegheny woodrat Facts
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| Interesting Allegheny woodrat Facts: |
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| Allegheny woodrat can reach 15 to 18 inches in length and 7 to 13 ounces of weight. Males are slightly larger than females. |
| Allegheny woodrat has grey or brownish-grey fur on the back. Color of the fur pales toward the throat, belly and upper portion of feet, which are white colored. Long, hairy tail is bi-colored: dark on the upper side and white below. |
| Allegheny woodrat has large eyes and ears, long, thick whiskers (around 50 stiff and soft whiskers on each side of the face) and long, hairy tail. |
| Allegheny woodrat is nocturnal animal (active during the night). |
| Diet of Allegheny woodrat is based mostly on seed, leaves, fruit, fungi, lichen, nuts and occasionally on insects. Allegheny woodrat rarely travels more than 150 feet to find food. |
| Allegheny woodrat builds cup-shaped nests that are usually 10 inches wide. They are made of twigs, roots, bark and leaves. Nests are located in hardly accessible areas such as crevices of rocks. |
| Allegheny woodrat also collects sticks and debris near the nest and creates large piles called "middens" that are used for storing of food. Bottle caps, band aids, coins, snail shells, feathers, bones and gun cartridges can be occasionally found in the middens. Scientists do not have explanation for the accumulation of these unusual items. |
| Allegheny woodrat does not hibernate during the winter. It consumes food stored in the middens when outer food sources become scarce. |
| Allegheny woodrats thump with their hind feet when they are threatened. |
| Natural enemies of Allegheny woodrats are hawks, owl, bobcats, foxes, weasels, skunks and snakes. |
| Allegheny woodrat is solitary and territorial creature. It occupies territory of 1.6 (during the winter) to 16 acres (during the summer) and defends it aggressively against intruders. |
| Mating season of Allegheny woodrat takes place from April and May. Females often produce 2 to 3 litters per season. |
| Pregnancy in females lasts 30 to 38 days and ends with 1 to 4 (usually 2) pups. Babies are naked and helpless at birth. They depend on the mother's milk until the age of 4 weeks. |
| Allegheny woodrats reach sexual maturity at the age of 3 to 4 months. They usually start to mate during the second year of life. |
| Allegheny woodrat can survive up to 3 years in the wild. |
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