It is a mammal and its scientific name is Oryzomys Palustrius Natator. Its status is endangered. No population is given as of June 1994.  

The rice rat has coarse fur and is 10 inches in total length. It has a silver-gray color along its back. It lives in salt marsh or fresh water marsh. It mostly lives in the lower Keys of Monroe County, Florida. 

It can also be found in nine keys. Those nine keys are: Big Torch, Johnston, Cudjoe, Middle Torch, Raccoon, Saddlebunch, Little Pine, Summerland, and Water Keys. 

 Its primary foods are seeds, plant parts, and animal parts (arthropods). There was no secondary food given. The rice rat is nocturnal. 

It constructs spherical grassy nests at night to sleep in during daytime. 

The silver rice rat is endangered because of commercial and  residential development. The raccoon helps with the disappearance of the silver rice rat by preying on it, along with its competition with black rats for food. The silver rice rat lives in the protected lands within the National Key Deer Refuge. It was first placed on the protective list April 30, 1994.  

What I would do to protect the silver rat is create a reserve just for them. It would have all the things that they would need. No predators  would be in the reserve. Competitions, like the black rat, would also not be in the reserve. If it got too populated in the reserve I would release some back into the wild. That would probably bring up the populations of the silver rice rat.  

You can help save the silver rice rat, too. I want to insure that my children will get to see some of the same animals I saw when I was younger.  

Written by / geschreven door : Stephanie

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