RODENTS

RODENTS

This series of articles which will be posted over the next 12 weeks in my blog will be heloful in educating you about Rodents (Rats, Mice and other species of the rodent order). Rodentiais the Latin word/order of mammals also known as rodents. They are physically characterized by:

• two continuously-growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing.

Forty-percent of mammal species are rodents, and they are found in vast numbers on all continents other than Antarctica.

Common rodents interacting with humans and may require some level of rodent extermination include:

• mice, rats,
• squirrels, chipmunks,
• gophers, porcupines, beavers,
• hamsters, gerbils, and guinea pigs.

Also, rodents have sharp incisors that they use to gnaw wood, break into food, and bite predators. Most eat seeds or plants, though some have more varied diets.

They have throughout the ages and still are pests to humans by eating human seed stores and spreading disease especially rats and mice.. Rodents evolved at the end of the Cretaceous period about 65 million years ago.

In terms of number of species — although not necessarily in terms of number of organisms (population) or biomass — rodents make up the largest order of mammals on earth, with over 40 percent of mammalian species belonging to the order. Their success is probably due to their small size, short breeding cycle, and ability to gnaw and eat a wide variety of foods.  There are about 2,277 species of rodents, about 42% of all mammal species.

Rodents are found in vast numbers on all continents except Antarctica, most islands, and in all habitats except for oceans. They are the only placental order other than bats (Chiroptera) and sea lions (Otariidae) to reach Australia without human introduction. More on rodents, rodent extermination including when there is a human rodent invasion in the next series of articles….

If you have a rodent invasion now in your home or business contact a professional rodent exterminator eliminate rodents and remediate the rodents damage.