Australias golden rat has stolen our hearts

[Judi Lynn]

FEBRUARY 05, 2018
Meet Australia's gorgeous golden-backed tree rat.



The golden-backed tree rat. IMAGE CREDIT: Copyright Australian Wildlife Conservancy

Bec Crew


YOU MIGHT STRUGGLE to find something to love about a regular rat, but this sun-kissed furball is one of the sweetest, most beautiful rodents we’ve ever seen.

And lucky they’re so photogenic - most of us will never actually encounter one in the wild, because they’re tucked away in one of the most pristine and remote locations in Australia, known as our continent’s ‘lost world’.

The golden-backed tree rat (Mesembriomys macrurus) is found exclusively in Australia. By day, they sleep in nests built in the hollows of trees, and by night, they hunt down a variety of flowers, fruits, insects, and grasses.

Little else is known about their behaviour, but those who have handled them describe them as having large, dark eyes; a ‘Mohawk’ of golden fur running long their back; and a long, paintbrush-like tail with a fluffy plume on the end.

More:
http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/blogs/creatura-blog/2018/02/meet-australias-gorgeous-golden-backed-tree-rat

[3catwoman3]

1. What a great floofy...

...tail. Cute little critter.

I have had cats most of my life. At various times, I have had mice of assorted colors, a white rat, a couple of guinea pigs, a few gerbils, and many hamsters. Does that make me a rodentophile?

No rodents now, but when I have had hamsters and cats at the same time, the hamsters provided great entertainment for the cats when they'd run in their exercise wheels.