Mice are small mammals from the order of rodents that live both in nature and near humans. This is a small animal with an elongated and pointed muzzle, large round ears and bulging eyes. A long, hairless or slightly furred tail is a distinctive feature of the animal. The anatomical structure of the paws helps rodents dig and move easily on vertical and horizontal surfaces. Depending on the species, the body length of a mouse can vary between 3-20 cm, and weight - 15-50 grams.
What diseases do rodents carry?
Rodents can spread more than 20 diseases that are dangerous to humans. Bubonic plague, murine typhus, salmonellosis, leptospirosis, and West African Lassa fever are just a few of the potentially fatal diseases carried by rats. These diseases caused the death of 25 million Europeans from the XIY to the XYII centuries.
It is believed that over the past millennium, diseases carried by rats have claimed more lives than all wars and revolutions combined.
At the end of the 20th century, medical attention was focused on rodent-borne hemorrhagic (mouse) fever viruses. From 1995 to 2000, at least 25 “new” hantaviruses and arenaviruses associated with rodents of the Mouse family were discovered. Approximately 200 thousand new cases of fever with kidney damage are recorded annually in Asia, with a mortality rate of 1-15%. Each virus is usually associated with one specific host species. Humans become infected through contact with rodent urine, feces or saliva.
Doctors first encountered this disease in Russia in the 30s of the last century. Today, mouse fever occurs almost throughout the country. In 2022, more than 8 thousand Russians fell ill with hemorrhagic fever.
Appearance
The river rat is a close relative of the common pasyuk. Hence the external similarity of these rodents. The water rat is also often confused with the muskrat, due to their appearance and similar habitats.
This is a small animal with gray-brown or black fur. The body length of an adult individual can reach 25 cm, and the average weight is 250 g. Sexual dimorphism is weakly expressed.
The muzzle is short, slightly reminiscent of a guinea pig . Small black eyes. Long front teeth, often yellow or orange. The ears are small, barely noticeable.
The body is elongated and flexible. The tail is long, but unlike the ordinary rats we are used to, it is not bald, but covered with thick hair. Only the very tip is bald; there is a small brush on it.
The color of the abdomen is slightly lighter than the back and head. In some varieties the tip of the tail may be white. The coat is thick and of medium length. Perfectly protects the rodent from the cold.
The river rat is able to swim even in fairly cool water due to its thick undercoat. Due to the length of the fur, the legs seem quite short. The river rat is also called: European vole, water rat and underwater rat.
What are moles for?
Moles for the most part do not harm agriculture and gardening, as is commonly believed. On the contrary, moles loosen the soil, providing oxygen and water access to the soil. In addition, moles eat underground insects, pupae, caterpillars and other pests, as well as small animals if they find themselves in its hole. The harm from them is not so great; their main diet is earthworms, which also loosen and process the soil.
A real mole is not interested in root crops and roots of garden plants; it does not feed on them; they are gnawed mainly by mice and mouse-like rodents, and not moles at all. For that matter, the mole is not a rodent at all. He doesn't need to sharpen his incisors, which are quite small.
The only time you want to get rid of a mole is when it starts digging up the lawns, leaving high molehills on them. This spoils the appearance of the site, and the owners prefer to kick the mole out. In this case, it is humane not to catch the mole in a trap, but simply install 2-3 or more earth-moving pest repellers, such as Tornado OZV.01 or Tornado OZV.02, on the site.
Appearance
The river rat is a close relative of the common pasyuk. Hence the external similarity of these rodents. The water rat is also often confused with the muskrat, due to their appearance and similar habitats.
This is a small animal with gray-brown or black fur. The body length of an adult individual can reach 25 cm, and the average weight is 250 g. Sexual dimorphism is weakly expressed.
The muzzle is short, slightly reminiscent of a guinea pig . Small black eyes. Long front teeth, often yellow or orange. The ears are small, barely noticeable.
The body is elongated and flexible. The tail is long, but unlike the ordinary rats we are used to, it is not bald, but covered with thick hair. Only the very tip is bald; there is a small brush on it.
The color of the abdomen is slightly lighter than the back and head. In some varieties the tip of the tail may be white. The coat is thick and of medium length. Perfectly protects the rodent from the cold.
The river rat is able to swim even in fairly cool water due to its thick undercoat. Due to the length of the fur, the legs seem quite short. The river rat is also called: European vole, water rat and underwater rat.
The benefits and harms of the field mouse
Many will say - well, what is the use of them? They just chew and ruin everything! But this is not the case in the ecosystem. These animals are an important element of the food chain. Without the existence of this little tailed mischief, many birds and animals would be left without basic food, for example.
We want to drive rats out of the world. What if they play some positive role in the biosphere? No. Experts decisively sign their death warrant, declaring that nature will be better off without rats. And yet, on earth they will remain not only in zoos; rats are the most convenient object for medical experiments, since they are susceptible to most of the diseases from which we also suffer.
Tens of millions of white rats (this is not a species, but simply a peace-loving, less aggressive albino of the feisty pasyuk) are specially raised in vivariums. Rats are given whiskey to drink so that later, by injecting them with various substances, they can find out how quickly they will sober up. White rats smoke opium to give people information about the cause of hallucinations, and eat pesticides to tell people about their danger or, conversely, harmlessness to humans. They are stuffed with all sorts of viruses or their skin is turned into a hard shell in order to find out the root cause of some skin diseases. A vacuum milker has even been designed for rats to determine whether drugs pass into the animal's milk. It’s impossible to count all the tasks. It would be good, for example, to find out how these creatures recognize vitamins without any equipment: if they are given a treat, but in one feeder with an admixture of vitamin B1, and in the other without it, the tailed tasters will only begin to eat the fortified lunch, leaving the other feeder unattended.
Listings are always tedious. Moreover, you can hardly tell about all this better than the American publicist Art Buchwald. In his opinion, long-tailed experimental subjects could have a conversation like this in the vivarium.
"What's wrong with you, Zelda? She lost so much weight.”
“They forced me to eat cyclamates. I lose three ounces of weight every week. What are you doing?"
“...Although I am still a very young rat, I have firmly decided not to strive to escape reality. That's why I research the effects of air pollution."
“As soon as you can stand it!”
What are rats for?
In nature there is no concept of “unwanted species”; one is food for another
Are there any benefits to rats? Yes, remembering the cartoon “Ratatouille”, one would like to say that in France, rats cook food. But this is a joke, what do we know about rats? Only that they multiply with enchanting speed, take root wherever possible, are extremely smart and quick-witted, have good physical characteristics, jump, run and swim well. In addition, they carry many diseases dangerous to humans and animals, cause enormous economic damage, etc. That is why many people prefer not to drive out rats using harmless ultrasonic devices, but to destroy them forever using poisons or traps.
However, humans are primarily to blame for the spread of rats. In cities where rats have chosen garbage dumps and basements, there are practically no natural enemies, birds of prey and animals, and accumulations of garbage only improve the living conditions of rodents. In their natural wild environment, rats do not fatten like that; they are eaten by owls and eagle owls, storks and other birds, ferrets, weasels, etc. So one species of animal is the food of another species of animal.
The white rat is a very important animal for biological research. No matter how it looks, thanks to her, new effective medicines are being discovered, since her susceptibility to diseases is similar to that of humans.
What are horseflies needed for?
Is this really a dead-end question? Well, could there be any benefit from horse flies? Everyone knows that horseflies bite painfully, an itchy wound appears at the site of the bite, and part of the body may swell from an allergic reaction. In addition, horseflies can carry dangerous diseases, so why feel sorry for them?
As always, there are a few things to figure out. Let's start with the fact that not all horseflies bite. Like mosquitoes, horseflies' bloodsuckers are females, while males prefer to drink flower nectar and are completely harmless. However, people eliminate horse flies by creating traps for them, such as the H-Trap. This is done not so much for the sake of the people themselves, but for the sake of domestic animals, horses, cows and others. They suffer the most from bites, and the presence of such traps on farms is understandable.
But is there any benefit from horse flies? It turns out there is. They are an important link in natural food chains. Insectivorous birds feed on them; in addition, horseflies participate in plant pollination. If horseflies are destroyed in large quantities, the ecological balance will be disrupted.
What do we eat? Preservatives. 1 part. E200 - E223
08/26/2009 at 01:38 pm (Legislation, Interesting, products) Tags: Potassium benzoate, Calcium benzoate, Sodium benzoate, Benzoic acid, Sodium hydrosulfite, Hoffmann, Gooding, Sulfur dioxide, Potassium salt of sorbic acid, Muller, Parabens, Sodium pyrosulfite, Potassium sorbate, Calcium sorbate, Sodium sorbate, Sorbic acid, Sodium sulfite, allergic reactions, anesthetic, antibiotic, antimicrobial effect, antiseptic, asthma, permissible dosage, urticaria, behavioral disorder, para-hydroxybenzoic acid methyl ester sodium salt, para-hydroxybenzoic acid methyl ester, para-hydroxybenzoic acid propyl ester, para-hydroxybenzoic acid ethyl ester sodium salt, para-hydroxybenzoic acid ethyl ester, food additive, antifungal, antimicrobial, E200, E201, E202, E203, E210, E211, E212, E213, E214 , E215, E216, E217, E218, E219, E220, E221, E222, E223, gastric irritation, antispasmodic, agent, fungicidal
Are wood lice dangerous for humans?
Woodlice cannot bite or physically harm a person, but they are capable of stealthily ruining the quiet life of household members with their sudden appearance.
If there is a lack of organic food, they can destroy fastidious and delicate exotic house plants such as orchids, cacti, and ferns.
If wood lice have settled in a pot or tub of flowers, this will soon lead to compaction of the soil. The plant may die due to a lack of oxygen or a violation of the integrity of the root system (pests like to “snack” on nutritious roots).
If insects have chosen the cellar, then the vegetable reserves prepared for future use for the winter may be significantly reduced.
In addition, when colonizing a greenhouse, miniature crustaceans can destroy sprouts of vegetable crops that have just hatched, which will affect the harvest.
Woodlice, due to their size, squeeze into any crack, so on their paws they can carry fungal spores, depriving, and other bacteria, running from the toilet to the kitchen for the next portion of food.
Authorization on the site
Sources
- Makhov S. Yu. Personal security strategy: educational manual; Lights - Moscow, 2014. - 568 p.
- Nomain, Alexey How to sell a credit car or a mortgaged apartment / Alexey Nomain. - M.: Publishing solutions, 2009. - 715 p.
- Tatyana, Viktorovna Evdokimova Features of the Russian intellectual property market in the context of participation in the WTO. Monograph / Tatyana Viktorovna Evdokimova. - M.: Prospekt, 2006. - 925 p.
- Yuri, Fedorovich Bespalov Cases of inheritance: some controversial issues of law enforcement. 2nd edition / Yuri Fedorovich Bespalov. - M.: Prospekt, 2014. - 700 p.
- Shastitko, A.E. Application of antimonopoly legislation in the markets of derivative goods: from determining product boundaries to advocating competition / A.E. Shastitko. - M.: Synergy, 2015. - 809 p.
What does a wood mouse eat?
The rodent's diet depends on the time of year. In winter, the mouse eats stored reserves, which consist mainly of plant seeds, grains and nuts. In early spring, rodents willingly eat young greenery - grass and leaves. In summer, mice feast on ovaries and fruits, as well as fresh seeds.
Find out more - “What wood mice like to eat.”
They are very fond of nuts and acorns, as well as mushrooms, which grow in abundance in the forests. Interestingly, mice only eat specimens that are not damaged by worms. Rodents do not disdain animal food - insects and larvae. If an animal discovers a clutch of eggs of a small bird, it will certainly take the opportunity to eat one.
What are mosquitoes for?
Mosquitoes are food for other animals, for example, dragonflies, bats, frogs, and some birds, for example, swifts, waders, dawns, tits, nightingales. Mosquito larvae eat fish, which is an important element of their diet. For example, bloodworms are the larvae of mosquitoes of the species Chironomidae and Tendipedidae. If they are not in the reservoir, then the nutrition of the fish in this reservoir will be greatly affected.
Some mosquito repellents, for example, Biolarvitsid-100, are specifically designed to destroy the population by affecting the larvae in the water. If this happens in a damp basement, then this is one thing, but if in a pond or other body of water, you can achieve that by destroying mosquitoes thoughtlessly, you will also destroy all the fish, as was the case in the 60s in the Ob River basin, where the destruction of mosquitoes led to because the fish, whose fry fed on mosquito larvae, disappeared.
Cons of content
Unfortunately, rats do not have their drawbacks. But the shortcomings of these cute rodents are very minor, and they can be easily dealt with.
Tendency to diseases
Rats have a fairly weak immune system, so fluffies often get sick. In addition, a predisposition to certain diseases is inherent in them at the genetic level. Most often, rodent owners encounter the following ailments of their pets:
- ARVI;
- malignant and benign neoplasms;
- mycoplasmosis;
- atherosclerosis;
- renal failure;
- pneumonia.
Rats also often suffer from fleas, lice, ticks, worms and other parasites.
Short lifespan
On average, rats live about 3 years. Compared to other types of pets, this is a very short period of time. Some varieties of decorative rats, for example, albinos, live only 1.5-2 years. Long-livers are also found among rodents. With proper care and timely treatment, a rat can live up to 4-4.5 years.
Marking territory
Some novice breeders mistakenly believe that only males mark territory. However, females also put their marks everywhere. The only difference is that the urine of male rats has a more pungent, specific odor. Regular cleaning of the cage will help solve this problem.
Unpleasant smell
During the life of a rat, like any other animal, an unpleasant odor is released. And it doesn't just come from excrement or urine. The endocrine glands also emit a specific aroma, to get rid of which you will have to regularly subject your pet to water procedures.
Unpleasant associations
The appearance of rodents, to put it mildly, scares some people away. Some consider cute decorative fluffies to be as aggressive as their wild relatives. And some breeds, for example, the Sphynx, are generally terrifying to especially impressionable people.
Damage to things
As long as the rat is in the cage, its owner’s property is completely safe. But rodents are very agile and are able to open a weak lock on their own. If he escapes, the fluffy will chew everything that gets in his way - furniture, wallpaper, clothes, wires. Therefore, it is recommended to place even a cage with a rat away from walls and any things - otherwise the rat can reach them through the twigs.
Noise at night
Rats are nocturnal animals. Therefore, they often go to bed only in the morning. And at night they stay awake, play, frolic, learn everything new. This feature can cause discomfort to owners, especially if small children live in the house. To ensure that pets do not disturb anyone’s sleep, it is better to place the cage in a separate room.
Aesthetic problems
Adult male rats have very prominent genitals. This is especially noticeable in representatives of short-haired and hairless varieties. This feature is very off-putting or confusing for some people.
Expensive treatment
The health of rats is quite poor; fluffies get sick very often. Therefore, they will have to be treated constantly, paying considerable sums for medical services. Moreover, ordinary veterinarians rarely work with such small animals as rodents. Most likely, you will need to look for a special doctor for rats - a ratologist.
The problem is aggravated by the fact that there is only one specialist for 2-3 cities. Therefore, for treatment, you may have to transport the animal to a neighboring village.
Preventive recommendations
In order to minimize the risk of mice in your home/apartment, follow these recommendations:
- regularly carry out dry and wet cleaning of the premises, dispose of garbage and waste;
- store food in airtight bags and containers, do not poison crumbs and leftovers;
- install small mosquito nets on ventilation openings and windows;
- monitor the condition of your pets and their accessories;
- promptly repair cracks and crevices in the walls and floors of the premises;
- eliminate leaks and sources of high humidity and dampness.
Reproduction and offspring
Wood mice become sexually mature at the age of two months. In nature, rodents breed only in the warm season - from the end of March to September. Over the course of a year, a female can produce 4-5 litters.
Pregnancy in wood mice lasts 20-25 days. There are from 4 to 7 cubs in one litter. They are born naked, blind and deaf. Around the fifth day, the mice's ears perk up and they begin to hear. During the same period, a soft cover appears on the body. Eyes open 2 weeks after birth.
The young grow quickly. By the age of one month, wood mice already know how to get their own food. And after another month they start their families.
a brief description of
Rats belong to the class mammals, order rodents, family mice. The animals have a sharp, elongated muzzle, and small ears and eyes. In most varieties, the tail is almost bare, covered with sparse vegetation and scales; in black rats, it is covered with thick hair. The length of the tail can be equal to or greater than the body size. There are also short-tailed rodents.
The fur covering the body of the animals is dense, rather thick, and the guard hairs are pronounced. The breed of rats is determined, among other things, by color. The color can be gray-brown, gray, sometimes yellow, orange, and reddish tones are found.
The animals are hardy and active, run fast, and in case of danger they are able to reach speeds of up to 10 km/h, jumping over obstacles no more than 1 meter high. Every day they are able to overcome 8 – 17 km. Rats are excellent swimmers, dives, and catch small fish. Rodents can spend three days in water without harm to health.
Mammals' vision is not very clear and is characterized by a small viewing angle of 16 degrees. Rats are forced to constantly turn their heads to examine their surroundings. They see the world in shades of gray.
Animals inhabit self-made holes, hollows, other people's nests, as well as artificially made premises. They live alone, in medium or large groups. Rodents are omnivores, but each species has its own taste preferences. Some breeds love shellfish and insects more, others love fruits, vegetables, and seeds.
Females bear offspring throughout the year. Populations living in northern regions do not reproduce in cold weather. One litter can consist of 2 – 22 cubs.
Each of us knows what rats look like, but the appearance of these animals can change depending on the breed, while the characteristic features remain unchanged.
