te autumn had been eliminated.
Again, unusually severe winter weather seemed to be the underlying
cause, as in January precipitation was the heaviest on record in 81
years, with penetrating sleet storms, persistent ice glaze, and
occasional brief thawing followed by sudden drops to extremely low
temperature.

After the drastic reduction in the winter of 1948-49, the population did
not recover. Although no further sudden reductions due to extremes of
weather were noted, the trend seemed to be one of gradual, progressive
decline throughout the following period of years. Deterioration of the
habitat, as the developing forest shaded out undergrowth, and inroads of
certain predators may have been important in preventing recovery of the
population. Many kinds of predatory mammals, hawks, owls, and snakes
probably take woodrats occasionally, but the spotted skunk, long-tailed
weasel, horned owl, timber rattlesnake and pilot black snake are
considered to be by far the most important predators because of their
habits and prey preferences. Few actual records of predation on woodrats
were obtained because of their scarcity during most of the period
covered by our study.

Of the animals which share the woodrat's habitat, many small mammals,
reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates use its houses and live in a
somewhat commensal relationship.

Woodrats are somewhat territorial, each defending its house and an
indefinite surrounding area against intrusion by others. Houses tend to
be spaced at intervals of at least 40 feet; occasionally they are closer
together. Most foraging for food is done within 75 feet of the house.
However, woodrats often wander far beyond the limits of the usual home
range. On the average, males travel more frequently and more widely than
females, and the larger and older males travel more than the smaller and
younger. Search for mates provides the chief motivation for wandering.
Extent of wandering is controlled to a large degree by availability of
natural travelways, such as rock ledges, by shelters for temporary
stopping places, such as old deserted houses, and by population density
of the rats themselves.

Food of the eastern woodrat consists chiefly of vegetation; many kinds
of leaves, fruits, and seeds are eaten. For many individuals foliage and
seeds of the osage orange are the staple; hedge rows and dense trees of
osage orange provide favorable sites for the houses. Woodrats are
attracted to meat b