Eastern Woodrat  Neotoma floridana CLASSIFICATION Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Rodentia Family Cricetidae Genus Neotoma Species floridana DESCRIPTION The Eastern Woodrat is a small mammal that ranges from twelve to seventeen inches in length. They are grayish brown on top and white or gray on their undersides. They have a bicolored tail that makes up for almost half of their length. HABITAT Eastern Woodrats make a small "stick house" to live in. These are usually found in protected areas such as under tumbled boulders and in caves up north as well as in hedges, low wooded areas, and holes in the ground down south. In the South they also like to live around Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera) trees. RANGE & DISTRIBUTION Eastern Woodrats can be found in much of the southeast including areas from Florida to Pennsylvania. This excludes all areas along the coast. They also live in parts of South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. COMMENTS AND COOL STUFF! The homes of Eastern Woodrats are made of sticks. If the nests are built in a cave the top may be open. Eastern Woodrat eat mainly green vegetation and occasionally eat fruits, nuts, fungi, ferns, and seeds. These animals also have a very clingy tendancies toward their mothers. If there is danger, the mother often has to drag her entire litter out of danger! Eastern woodrats have lots of predators including bobcats, weasels, owls, and snakes, but if they are inside their homes, only the snakes and weasels can get to them. The scientific name Neotoma floridana comes from neos (Gr) new and tomos (Gr) sharp; cutting; an allusion to the teeth indicating a new genus of rodent, and -anus (L) suffix meaning belonging to. Named from Florida, but also inhabiting others parts of the southeastern USA. This page created by Andrew A. Back to Field Guide Menu