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Guiry E, Kennedy R, Orton D, Armitage P, Bratten J, Dagneau C, Dawdy S, deFrance S, Gaulton B, Givens D, Hall O, Laberge A, Lavin M, Miller H, Minkoff MF, Niculescu T, Noël S, Pavao-Zuckerman B, Stricker L, Teeter M, Welker M, Wilkoski J, Szpak P, Buckley M. The ratting of North America: A 350-year retrospective on Rattus species compositions and competition. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadm6755. [PMID: 38569028 PMCID: PMC10990262 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adm6755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
While the impacts of black (Rattus rattus) and brown (Rattus norvegicus) rats on human society are well documented-including the spread of disease, broad-scale environmental destruction, and billions spent annually on animal control-little is known about their ecology and behavior in urban areas due to the challenges of studying animals in city environments. We use isotopic and ZooMS analysis of archaeological (1550s-1900 CE) rat remains from eastern North America to provide a large-scale framework for species arrival, interspecific competition, and dietary ecology. Brown rats arrived earlier than expected and rapidly outcompeted black rats in coastal urban areas. This replacement happened despite evidence that the two species occupy different trophic positions. Findings include the earliest molecularly confirmed brown rat in the Americas and show a deep ecological structure to how rats exploit human-structured areas, with implications for understanding urban zoonosis, rat management, and ecosystem planning as well as broader themes of rat dispersal, phylogeny, evolutionary ecology, and climate impacts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Guiry
- Department of Anthropology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Dr., Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2, Canada
- School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester, Mayor’s Walk, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
| | - Ryan Kennedy
- Department of Anthropology, Indiana University Bloomington, 701 E. Kirkwood Ave., Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - David Orton
- BioArCh, Department of Archaeology, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Philip Armitage
- Independent researcher, 7 Park Court, Heath Road, Brixham TQ5 9AX, UK
| | - John Bratten
- Department of Anthropology, University of West Florida, 11000 University Pkwy, Pensacola, FL 32514, USA
| | - Charles Dagneau
- Underwater Archaeology Team, Parks Canada, 1800 Walkley, Ottawa, ON K1H8K3, Canada
| | - Shannon Dawdy
- Department of Anthropology, University of Chicago, 1126 E 59th St, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Susan deFrance
- Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Barry Gaulton
- Department of Archaeology, Memorial University, Queen's College, 210 Prince Philip Dr., St. John's, NL A1B 3R6, Canada
| | - David Givens
- Jamestown Rediscovery/Preservation Virginia, 1365 Colonial Parkway, Jamestown, VA 23081, USA
| | - Olivia Hall
- Department of Anthropology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Dr., Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2, Canada
| | - Anne Laberge
- Département des sciences historiques, Université Laval, 1030 avenue des Sciences-Humaines, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Michael Lavin
- Jamestown Rediscovery/Preservation Virginia, 1365 Colonial Parkway, Jamestown, VA 23081, USA
| | - Henry Miller
- Historic St. Mary's City, St. Mary's City, MD 20686, USA
| | - Mary F. Minkoff
- Florida Public Archaeology Network, 207 E Main St., Pensacola, FL 32502, USA
| | - Tatiana Niculescu
- Office of Historic Alexandria/Alexandria Archaeology, 105 North Union Street, #327, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
| | - Stéphane Noël
- Ville de Quebec, Bureau de projet du tramway de Québec, 226-825 boul. Lebourgneuf, Québec, QC G2J 0B9, Canada
| | - Barnet Pavao-Zuckerman
- Department of Anthropology, University of Maryland, 4302 Chapel Lane, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Leah Stricker
- Jamestown Rediscovery/Preservation Virginia, 1365 Colonial Parkway, Jamestown, VA 23081, USA
| | - Matt Teeter
- Department of Anthropology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Dr., Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2, Canada
| | - Martin Welker
- Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, 1013 E University Blvd. Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, 1009 E South Campus Dr., Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - Jennifer Wilkoski
- Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 401 W Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
| | - Paul Szpak
- Department of Anthropology, Trent University, 1600 West Bank Dr., Peterborough, ON K9L 0G2, Canada
| | - Michael Buckley
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, School of Natural Sciences, The University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
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