Unwelcome companions: Ancient rats reviewed

Abstract

The commensal rats — notably the black rat Rattus rattus and the brown R. norvegicus — are among mankind's most destructive and dangerous enemies, and have spread relentlessly with humans across the globe. A decade after an important ratty meeting at the Natural History Museum, London, in 1981, this noxious rodent pest is again reviewed. © 1994, Antiquity Publications Ltd. All rights reserved.