A medium-sized brown rodent with coarse fur. Abundant prey for hawks, owls, snakes, and bobcats across the southeastern US.
§ Quick facts
§ Encyclopedia
The hispid cotton rat is a rat long thought to occur in parts of South America, Central America, and southern North America. However, recent taxonomic revisions, based on mitochondrial DNA sequence data, have split this widely distributed species into three separate species. The distribution of S. hispidus ranges from Arizona in the west to Virginia to the east and from the Platte River in Nebraska in the north to, likely, the Rio Grande in the south, where it meets the northern edge of the distribution of S. toltecus. Adult size is total length 202–340 mm (8.0–13.4 in); tail 87–122 mm (3.4–4.8 in), frequently broken or stubbed; hind foot 29–35 mm (1.1–1.4 in); ear 16–20 mm (0.63–0.79 in); mass 50–250 g (1.8–8.8 oz). They have been used as laboratory animals.
Source: Wikipedia — Hispid cotton rat Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
§ Identification
Field marks. Medium-large rat with coarse gray-brown fur; pale belly; short tail.
Similar species. Other Sigmodon species. House Rat (introduced).
Voice. Squeaks.
§ Diet & behavior
Diet. Grasses, seeds, insects, small invertebrates.
Behavior. Common cotton rat of southeastern US. Reproduces explosively; populations can boom and crash.
§ Range
Southeastern US and into Mexico
§ Habitat
Grasslands, brushy areas, agricultural fields
§ Threats
Pesticide-driven population swings, secondary effects on predators.
§ Conservation status
According to the IUCN Red List, the hispid cotton rat is currently classified as Least Concern.
§ What helps
Skip rodenticides. Tolerate cotton rats in brushy field corners.
§ Further reading
- Wikipedia — Hispid cotton rat
- www.nwf.org — authoritative profile of Sigmodon hispidus
- IUCN Red List · taxon 20056
- iNaturalist · taxon 42953
- GBIF occurrence records
- Encyclopedia of Life — Sigmodon hispidus
§ Sources cited
- American Society of Mammalogists
- IUCN Red List 2016
