Insects › Spiny Rat Lice
House Rat Louse
Polyplax spinulosa
9 photos
Study shows up to four per card, from different observers, so you learn the species rather than one picture. Heart the good ones and swap any you do not like.
Photos you add are credited to you, and you keep the copyright.
Easily confused with
Northeastern Marsh Rice RatOryzomys palustris
Oriental House RatRattus tanezumi
Polynesian RatRattus exulans
Black RatRattus rattus
Brown RatRattus norvegicus
Ricefield RatRattus argentiventer
White-footed Indo-Chinese RatRattus nitidus
Himalayan RatRattus pyctoris
Study checks a spoken answer against these, and tells you which one you named.
Where it is recorded
| United States | 234 |
|---|---|
| Texas | 40 |
| Georgia | 31 |
| Iowa | 26 |
| Nebraska | 21 |
| South Carolina | 16 |
| Virginia | 13 |
| West Virginia | 10 |
| Mississippi | 8 |
| Ohio | 6 |
Counts show where people looked, not only where it lives.
Traits
Physical
- ExoskeletonHas a hard external skeletonFrom its classification
Classification
| Kingdom | Animals · Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Arthropods · Arthropoda |
| Class | Insects · Insecta |
| Order | Bark Lice, Book Lice, and Parasitic Lice · Psocodea |
| Family | Spiny Rat Lice · Polyplacidae |
| Genus | Mouse Lice · Polyplax |
Sources
- Names, taxonomy and observation counts: www.inaturalist.org
- Photos and recordings: the creator and source are on each one.
- How much to rely on each source
Remember the name next time.
Practise House Rat Louse with real photos from different observers. Say the name out loud, and it comes back just before you would forget it.