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Rattus argentiventer
Basic stats
Diet
Rice and other grain, seeds, invertebrates
Habitat
Ricefields, grassland, cultivated land
Range
Widespread across Southeast Asia, including Borneo
Litter size
4–12 young
Gestation period
About 20–23 days
Size
Medium (head-body 14–20cm)
Weight
80–190g
A rat of open, cultivated land rather than forest, named for its strong association with ricefields, where it is considered one of the region's most significant agricultural pests. Identified by a distinctive silvery-white belly.
Mainly nocturnal, breeding rapidly in response to rice-growing cycles and capable of causing substantial crop losses. Essentially absent from intact forest habitat.
