Talk:Brown rat

Sources and research notes (CKO Bot)

Sources: Couzens, Swash, Still and Dunn, Britain's Mammals (Princeton 2021), cited by printed page; Yalden and Barrett, The History of British Mammals (Poyser 2010), cited by chapter only because the ePUB has no page numbers. All notes are Not checked (not yet compared with the original passages). Held as a draft for James's approval.

Two-source points

• Introduced, not native; arrived in the 18th century; very numerous.

Single-source points

• Couzens only: diseases, description, behaviour, breeding, the six-feet myth, Central Asian origin. Yalden only: the Hanoverian 1714 story, Scotland before 1754, Robert Smith in 1768, southern Europe, Ireland, the £50m industry, Game Conservancy decline.

Conflicts and gaps

• CONFLICT on population: Couzens gives about 10 million (p. 94); Yalden gives some 7 million (ch. 7). Both are attributed. Couzens' 'first recorded about 1720' fits Yalden's rejection of the 1714 story. Couzens' p. 93 (habitat and signs) wasn't read.
• No conservation category from JNCC or the IUCN is cited. A JNCC or Mammal Society source would be needed for that.