Norway rat

rattus norvegicus

Body length up to 25 cm, tail scaly and ringed, slightly shorter than the body. Upper side of the fur is gray-brown to reddish-brown in color. The belly is light gray to whitish. The limbs are short and the front and hind paws are bare and pink. Like all rodents, rats have two incisors in the upper jaw and two in the lower jaw. These are strong, chisel-like and deeply anchored in the jaw and must be used constantly, otherwise they will continue to grow. In Europe, the species is primarily regarded as a food and hygiene pest. Damage is caused by feeding on food, but above all by contaminating it with excrement and urine and by destroying packaging materials. Hygienic problems arise primarily from the spread of paratyphoid germs into kitchens and storerooms, which is a frequent cause of food and feed poisoning. Norway rats are known in Europe primarily as reservoirs and excreters of leptospires, the pathogens that cause leptospirosis.