When you have to call for rodent control services in Guelph, it is most often because of an infestation of either rats or mice. Mice and rats are two species in the order Rodentia, but there are many more species, of all different sizes, found all over the world. However, there are few other rodents species that make pests of themselves by infesting homes and businesses as rats and mice do. 

How Many Different Rodent Species Are There?

Rodents are very plentiful throughout the world. Including rats and mice, there are over 2,000 different species of rodents. Rodents are so plentiful that they account for 40% of all mammal species on Earth. 

There are also species that many people mistakenly believe to be rodents even though they aren’t, such as rabbits, moles, and bats. The confusion is especially understandable in the case of rabbits. It was only in 1912 that scientists reclassified rabbits into their own order. Prior to that, they had been considered rodents. 

What Characteristics Distinguish Rodents From Other Species?

There is a wide variety in the characteristics of rodent species. The main thing that sets them apart from other creatures is their teeth. Rodents have prominent incisors in the front of the top and bottom jaws used for cutting into food. What makes the rodents’ incisors unique is that they never stop growing throughout their entire lives. For this reason, rodents have a need to keep chewing on hard objects to keep their teeth filed down; otherwise, they would grow out of control. While other species have prominent incisors, only rodents share the quality of perpetual growth. 

What Other Types of Rodents Are There?

There are many different ways to categorize rodents. One way is by size. The largest rodent species in the world is the capybara. It looks a lot like a guinea pig but is the size of a large dog or a miniature horse. 

Another way of categorizing rodents is by where they live. Some rodents are burrowing creatures, such as marmots, groundhogs, and voles. Some, like squirrels, live in trees. There are a few species of aquatic mammals, such as the beaver. 

Some types of mammals are domesticated and kept as companion animals. It is common for people to keep hamsters, guinea pigs, and gerbils in their homes as pets. Some people also keep mice and rats as pets, but these are tame rodents bred specifically for the purpose. Wild rats and mice should never be fed or handled for the purpose of making them pets. They could become aggressive in self-defence or could expose you and your family to dangerous diseases. 

Sometimes mammals are misunderstood by humans. For example, there have been a lot of misconceptions about lemmings over the years. They were believed to be formed in the sky and then fall to earth like rain or snow. A 17th-century naturalist determined that, if anything, their bodies were blown about by the wind. Then people believed that lemmings committed mass suicide by diving off cliffs. They do dive off cliffs but, though some may perish in the attempt, their purpose is actually to migrate to a new location by swimming. Farmers haven’t always welcomed beavers onto their property for fear that the dams they build would flood the fields, but beaver dams actually have an important role to play in irrigation. 

Misunderstandings of rodents by humans have sometimes resulted in conflict. Prairie dogs are a keystone species, digging burrows that provide homes for many other species, so their survival is vital to the grasslands. Unfortunately, many ranchers have hunted prairie dogs because their burrows have also injured livestock that have stepped in the holes. 

Contact Truly Nolen for Rodent Control Services in Guelph

While humans sometimes misunderstand rodents, the threat posed by wild rats and mice is not exaggerated. They really can spread serious diseases and cause extensive property damage. Truly Nolen offers effective pest control solutions tailored to each species.