The fur is shaggy and course with variations in colour. The tail is shorter than the head and body combined, and scaly. They prefer foods with high protein or carbohydrate content, but will eat almost any type of food. They need water to survive unlike mice. Rats live about one year and live in colonies like humans so you never just have one rat.
Rats live in burrows, normally at the edge of foundations of walls.
As the family grows, more burrows are built resulting in a network of underground tunnels. If the population is too large some rats move out into attics and roof voids. Rats are nocturnal, with their peak activity at dusk or before dawn. When the population is large or they are disturbed or hungry, you can see activity during the day. Statistics One pair of mice can produce 200 offspring in four months.