- copy; L. Indges, California Academy of Science. Used with permission.
Woodrats are commonly called “pack rats” because they have a tendency to collect any curious object they find. The desert woodrat, Neotoma lepida, is one of 22 species of woodrats found in North and Central America. The smallest of southern California’s woodrats, it is related to cotton rats and deer, harvest, and grasshopper mice.
Facts and Features
- Geographic Distribution
Great Basin, Sonoran and Mojave deserts from southern Oregon and Idaho, south through Nevada, western and southern Utah, southern and coastal California to Baja California, Mexico
- Amazing Facts
Woodrats differ from “city” rats in that their tail is covered with hair which make the scales difficult to see; whereas, the tails of city rats are naked with very visible scales.
- At the Aquarium
The desert woodrat is illustrated on the Wave’s mosaic tile mural, Rios de la Vida (Rivers of Life). The fountain, mural, and accompanying graphics illustrate the story of our Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers.