Black rat: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the black rat lives – recorded in 14 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Rattus rattus
Group	Mice, rats & other rodents
Status	Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	14 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America
Class	Mammal
Order	Rodentia
Family	Muridae

Where does the black rat live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the black rat in 14 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America. Wikidata gives its range as: Macapá. In Brazil, Spain, France, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Portugal, United States it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Australia
Portugal (introduced)
France (introduced)
Benin
Martinique
Spain (introduced)
Réunion
Tanzania
Switzerland
United States (introduced)
New Zealand (introduced)
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
United Kingdom (introduced)
Brazil (introduced)

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the black rat endangered?

The black rat’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the black rat?

The black rat (Rattus rattus) is a mammal in the order Rodentia and the family Muridae, genus Rattus. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the black rat

The black rat (Rattus rattus), also known as the roof rat, ship rat, or house rat, is a common long-tailed rodent of the stereotypical rat genus Rattus, in the subfamily Murinae. It is a generalist omnivore that can live on a wide variety of foods. It associates extensively with humans, and most populations are synanthropic. It likely originated in the Indian subcontinent, but is now found worldwide.

The black rat is black to light brown in colour with a lighter underside. It is a prominent pest to farmers because it feeds on a wide range of agricultural crops. It is sometimes kept as a pet, though most domestic rats are a subspecies of the brown rat. In parts of India, it is considered sacred and respected, notably at the Karni Mata Temple in Deshnoke.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Black rat (revision 1380869904), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q106133 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).