Newly found hope for Appalachia's wild rat offered by the pandemic

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The Allegheny woodrat, native to the Appalachian Mountains and parts of the Midwest, is not your average rodent. The species is innately curious and docile around people, a unique trait not found in most other mammals of the eastern U.S.

“They’re so charismatic and easygoing,” says Gretchen Fowles, biologist for New Jersey’s Endangered and Nongame Species Program. When found in a research trap, they’re usually found sitting calmly and quietly, she says, seemingly unperturbed.

The one-pound, hairy-tailed rat is notable for another reason: its population is in a swift and mysterious decline.

But in 2020, the pandemic changed all that: After a regional conference was canceled, mammalogists from 13 states began to meet monthly on Zoom, sharing data and strategies for restoring the rodent’s population.

 

This unified approach has energized woodrat conservation, Feller says, in particular now that state biologists have connected, they can more easily partner together to apply for larger grants.

“Many people may not know these woodrats even exist, but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth saving,” he says. “Their existence is part of what makes these mountains so special. They’ve long been a part of our eastern forests, and they should be for future generations.”

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/allegheny-wild-rat-is-mysteriously-disappearing

[A MESS 3,938]

i'm so happy for jeffree star 

[ARTPOPe 10,169]

@Mer Boy is gonna wake up to these wonderful news 

[Magui 2,654]

"The species is innately curious and docile around people..."

Maybe we could even pet them. 

[Rat Boy 43,832]

2 hours ago, ARTPOPe said:

@Mer Boy is gonna wake up to these wonderful news 

Finally some positive press about rats!

2 hours ago, Magui said:

Maybe we could even pet them. 

No