RUSTLE
the Bush Rat

Rustle spends some of his time in a little burrow where he has a cosy nest. He comes out of his burrow every now and then to look for food to eat. He likes insects but also eats all sorts of plants. Sometimes, when a bushfire has burnt out all the food, Rustle will eat mushrooms, which quickly emerge after the fire.

Rustle likes living in little gullies with dense undergrowth. He loves fallen trees because they can provide shelter and also a quick runway over the thick scrub below. They also make nice places to sit, especially underneath in the cool.

Bush rats have about five babies at a time, usually in spring and summer. They become independent at the early age of just 4-5 weeks. The mother has a little home range she owns, to get her food from. Some of the males have a big range they wander about in, sometimes covering as much as a kilometre in a single night.

Bush rats are quite common around much of the wooded coast and ranges of Australia.