What is a Woodrat

Below is a transcription of the above sign found at the Valley of Fire Visitor Center.

Woodrat or Packrat – Neotoma lepida

HABITAT

Creosote Bush Scrub to Pinyon-Juniper Woodland

SIZE/DESCRIPTION

8 to 15 inches (20 to 38 cm) long including furred tail.

Color: Buff-gray above, gray underneath, white hind feet.

FOOD

Spiny cacti, yucca pods, berries, pine nuts, seeds, and other plant matter.

RANGE

Southeastern Oregon, southwestern Idaho, Utah, Nevada, and southern California.

ADAPTATION FOR SURVIVAL

Nocturnal; derives most of moisture needed from green or succulent vegetation.

Woodrat is not affected by harmful oxalic acids found in cactus.

COMMENTS

The pack rat scavenges twigs, cones, and bark to use in building huge nests cemented together with its own urine.

Because the animal only ranges about 150 feet (50 m) from its nest, all the materials used in them are local.

In sheltered places, these nests last for many thousands of years.

Biologists can tell so much about ancient environments from studying these old nests.

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