Wild South has been working with the USFS to ensure that timber sales and management projects do not impact woodrats in NC.  We accomplish this goal by surveying woodrat habitat and monitoring known populations in and around potential logging sites.

Physical Description

The Alleghany woodrat is the second largest native member of the North American family of rats and mice.  It weighs up to a pound (about the size of a large squirrel).  They measure from 15 to 18 inches in length, of which 7 to 8 inches is tail.  Body is brownish-grey in color with white undersides and feet.  Unlike old world rats with naked furless tails, the Alleghany woodrat has a furry tail that is black above and white below.

Distribution & Habitat

Woodrats are found along the Appalachian Mountain range.  Historically found as far north as Connecticut (which it is now extinct from) down to northeastern Alabama.  The Tennessee River is generally accepted as the southern range limit.  In North Carolina, Allegheny woodrats are only found in the northwestern mountains.  They inhabit rocky outcrops associated with mountain ridges such as cliffs, caves, talus slopes, and even mines. Boulder fields provide excellent habitat in NC.  The surrounding forest is usually deciduous.

Life History and Diet

The Allegheny woodrat is nocturnal and spends its nights foraging, very rarely traveling more than 150 feet from its home range.  They also collect and store various non-food items such as bottle caps, snail shells, coins, gun cartridges, feathers, etc. This trait is responsible for the nickname “pack rat.”

Extinction Pressure

Allegheny woodrat populations have been experiencing a dramatic decline for the past 3 decades.  They are now extirpated from much of their northern range and are becoming rare elsewhere.  Raccoon roundworm is a fatal parasite to the woodrat and is thought to be a major cause of decline in the Northeast.  Woodrats have also been affected by a dwindling food supply due to the loss of the American chestnut and by gypsy moth defoliation of oaks.

Conservation Status

Allegheny woodrats are listed as a federal “Species of Concern.”  They are extirpated from CT and MA and probably NY and OH.  They are listed as endangered in MD, IN,OH, NJ, and NY and threatened in PA.  In NC, Allegheny woodrats are listed as a state species of “Special Concern.”