black rat vs Brown Rat

Rattus rattus compared with Rattus norvegicus

Key Differences

• black rat is Extinct while Brown Rat is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	black rat	Brown Rat
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Mammalia (Mammals)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order same	Rodentia (Rodents)	Rodentia (Rodents)
Family same	Muridae (Mice & Rats)	Muridae (Mice & Rats)
Genus same	Rattus	Rattus
Species	Rattus rattus	Rattus norvegicus

Evolutionary Relationship

black rat and Brown Rat share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Rattus.

Conservation Status

black rat

EX — Extinct

Brown Rat

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	black rat	Brown Rat
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

black rat

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (16 countries), Asia (13 countries), Europe (41 countries), North America (16 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (14 countries), and South America (10 countries).

Brown Rat

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (11 countries), Asia (15 countries), Europe (41 countries), North America (16 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (10 countries), and South America (10 countries).

black rat

The Black rat (Rattus rattus) is a species in the genus Rattus. It is currently classified as Extinct on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Brown Rat

Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 95 countries:

🇦🇱 Albania 🇦🇴 Angola 🇦🇷 Argentina 🇦🇺 Australia 🇦🇹 Austria 🇧🇸 Bahamas 🇧🇧 Barbados 🇧🇾 Belarus 🇧🇪 Belgium 🇧🇴 Bolivia 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina 🇧🇷 Brazil 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 🇨🇻 Cabo Verde 🇨🇦 Canada 🇨🇱 Chile 🇨🇴 Colombia 🇨🇷 Costa Rica 🇭🇷 Croatia 🇨🇺 Cuba 🇨🇾 Cyprus 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇩🇲 Dominica 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇪🇬 Egypt 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇯 Fiji 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇩🇪 Germany 🇬🇷 Greece 🇬🇩 Grenada 🇬🇾 Guyana 🇭🇺 Hungary 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇮🇷 Iran 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇮🇹 Italy 🇯🇲 Jamaica 🇯🇵 Japan 🇯🇴 Jordan 🇰🇼 Kuwait 🇱🇻 Latvia 🇱🇸 Lesotho 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇲🇹 Malta 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands 🇲🇺 Mauritius 🇲🇽 Mexico 🇫🇲 Micronesia 🇲🇩 Moldova 🇲🇨 Monaco 🇳🇦 Namibia 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇿 New Zealand 🇲🇰 North Macedonia 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇼 Palau 🇵🇪 Peru 🇵🇱 Poland 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇷🇴 Romania 🇷🇺 Russia 🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis 🇱🇨 Saint Lucia 🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 🇼🇸 Samoa 🇸🇲 San Marino 🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia 🇸🇳 Senegal 🇷🇸 Serbia 🇸🇨 Seychelles 🇸🇰 Slovakia 🇸🇮 Slovenia 🇿🇦 South Africa 🇪🇸 Spain 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇨🇭 Switzerland 🇹🇼 Taiwan 🇹🇴 Tonga 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago 🇹🇻 Tuvalu 🇺🇦 Ukraine 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 🇺🇸 United States 🇺🇾 Uruguay 🇻🇺 Vanuatu 🇻🇪 Venezuela