Black Rat

The black rat (Rattus rattus) is a common long-tailed rodent of the genus Rattus (rats) in the subfamily Murinae (murine rodents). The species originated in tropical Asia and spread through the Near East in Roman times before reaching Europe by the 1st century and spreading with Europeans across the world.

Read more about Black Rat:  Taxonomy, Description, Origin of Rattus Rattus, Diet, Distribution and Habitat, Home Range, Behavior, Ecology, Predators and Parasites, Control Methods, Endangerment and Conservation

Famous quotes containing the words black and/or rat:

    We lay long in the immense tide
    Of shade and shadowy desire
    And saw the dusk assail the wall,
    The black surge, mounting, crash the stone!
    Companion of this lust, we fall,
    I said lest we should die alone.
    Allen Tate (1899–1979)

    Your rat tail is all the fashion now. I prefer a bushy plume, carried straight up. You are Siamese and your ancestors lived in trees. Mine lived in palaces. It has been suggested to me that I am a bit of a snob. How true! I prefer to be.
    Raymond Chandler (1888–1959)