![]() You might find anywhere from 10 to 100 other nests in close proximity, since woodrats thrive in extended colonies of related females. Nearly every coast live oak forest or willow thicket hosts a few nests. Woodrat nests are especially easy to find in the winter, after the understory shrubs have dropped their leaves. Why someone missed gum wrappers is unclear to me. (They are especially attracted to shiny objects…again like my mother-in-law.) Folks living near these critters have reported missing shoes, lace curtains, crackers, soap, wallpaper, and even gum wrappers. ![]() And often when they are carrying an item and encounter another prize they consider more enticing, they’ll put down what they’re carrying and abscond with the new treasure-hence the other common name, trade rat. Woodrats are sometimes called pack rats because they love to collect and store various kinds of junk, much like my former mother-in-law did. Goldilocks with whiskers! A dusky-footed woodrat emerges from its hole. But they also need to keep their fur dry for good health. They don’t like light (not even moonlight) and so prefer densely shaded areas, especially near water. Like us humans, woodrats have very particular requirements for their homes. If you’re a hiker, it’s hard not to notice their strikingly large nests, which can be three to six feet high, up to eight feet across-approaching the size of a Volkswagen bug or my stack of unread New Yorkers-and often built right on the ground. It’s also extremely cute, with big Mickey Mouse ears and a lovely, lightly fuzzy tail. Our local species, the dusky-footed woodrat ( Neotoma fuscipes), has a nice multicolor coat-unlike the nasty nonnative Norway and black rats, all too common in urban areas. Woodrats, pack rats, and trade rats are all common names for the same remarkable rodent genus, Neotoma. ![]()
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