When it comes to roof rats it is important to understand what they look like.
Get rid roof rats florida.
Also known as black rats as well as palm rats fruit rats or citrus rats because of their largely vegetarian diets roof rats are the most common type of rat that is found in florida.
The adult roof rat is about 7 10 inches long and weighs about 5 9 ounces.
The roof rat has a long tail which is longer than the combined length of the head and body.
So now that you know what these rodents are the big question is what to do about them.
The roof rat is the most common type of rat found in south florida.
In south florida there are several species of rats.
If you have a palm tree within three feet of your roof line then it will be easy for these rodents to jump from the tree onto your roof.
What you ll want to look for are any signs that the rats are present including droppings tracks gnaw marks burrows runways and rodent sounds.
The roof rat about the roof rat.
The fur of roof rat is smooth while the fur of the norway rat is rough and shaggy.
In dense populations these rodents will establish a social hierarchy wherein dominant males mate more than subordinate males.
The common lifespan of these rodents is about one year.
Roof rats are excellent climbers and they often prefer to build their nests up high in attics or in beams near the roof.
Toxic baits or rodenticides are intended to kill the rats when they eat the bait.
Palm rats are also known as roof rats citrus rats black rats and ship rats belong to the muridae family of the rodent species.
Inspecting roof rat.
The most invasive species that is found living in the highest numbers is the roof rat.
Roof rats become sexually mature between two and five months producing four to six litters per year that consist of six to eight young each.
Roof rats have soft and smooth fur that is typically brown with intermixed spots of black.
Roof rats will invade homes any time of the year including in the summer season in order to escape the heat.
Roof rats may be attracted to simple food scraps including pieces of fruit and bacon.
The following are the three most commonly found types of rats in florida and how you can identify them.
Roof rats are long and thin rodents that have large eyes and ears a pointed nose and a scaly tail.
Palm rats live for about one year and weigh around half a pound these rats are smaller than sewer rats and are about the same size as woodrats.
If you pull the tail back over the body it will reach over its head.
Their undersides are often white gray or black.
Roof rats are identified by a number of different names including palm rats fruit rats citrus rats and black rats.
What are palm rats.
Get rid of roof rats in four basic steps.
In addition try putting the attractant out for a few days before setting the trap.
Step 1 in order to assess the severity of the rat problem and to get a better idea of where to bait and trap you will first need to perform a thorough inspection of the premises.