Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
Here we have tonight’s backyard episode… starring Rachel ,White-Tailed Rat & Ruby Rakali (formerly known as “water rat” but let’s be honest, Rubs had a PR glow-up). They share their yard with me 🙏.
Rachel, local menace, full-time demolition expert. The only sound I’ve ever heard from her is chewing — car? Chewed. House? Chewed. Mystery object you didn’t even know you owned? Also chewed. Honestly, if it exists, Rachel’s had a go .
But the other night… plot twist.
For the first time ever, I heard Rachel talking. And not just her — Ruby was in on it too. The two of them having a proper little backyard yarn.
And I’ve gotta say… it’s pretty darn cute.
So crank the volume ⬆️ & enjoy this rare ( for me at least ) audio of Rachel not actively destroying my property for once and Ruby whom I have never heard.
Both native rats .🐀🐀
Rachel white tailed rat , Uromys caudimaculatus , large up to 1kg restricted to North Queensland known for their incredibly strong teeth .
Ruby Rakali , Hydromys chrysogaster, (this one is a regular missing a foot so easy to recognise) , has a pretty rough backstory behind that cute face. Sounds familiar 🐊. Back in the late 1800s early 1900s, they were heavily hunted for fur. It was marketed as “Australian otter fur” to make it sound a bit fancier more flash than “rat,” and it actually became a decent little fur trade for a while. The problem was… they trapped them hard. Populations dropped a lot in some areas, & in places they pretty much disappeared.
Things turned around ; fur trade declined, they got legal protection & people began recognising them as native wildlife, not pests. These days they’ve made a solid comeback in many parts of Australia, though they still rely on healthy waterways to thrive.
The other sounds you can hear are
Crickets 🦗
Orange footed Scrub-fowl Native birds 🐦
Frogs 🐸
Chooks 🐓and ducks 🦆
So you have to listen carefully to hear 🐀🐀
They are on the megapode mound (scrubfowl ) in the chook pen and eating left over chook food I think. Chooks are locked up in a cage at night to keep them safe & then the fun begins .
#Rats
#queensland
#ratsareawesome
#ratsarecute
Here we have tonight’s backyard episode… starring Rachel ,White-Tailed Rat & Ruby Rakali (formerly known as “water rat” but let’s be honest, Rubs had a PR glow-up). They share their yard with me 🙏.
Rachel, local menace, full-time demolition expert. The only sound I’ve ever heard from her is chewing — car? Chewed. House? Chewed. Mystery object you didn’t even know you owned? Also chewed. Honestly, if it exists, Rachel’s had a go .
But the other night… plot twist.
For the first time ever, I heard Rachel talking. And not just her — Ruby was in on it too. The two of them having a proper little backyard yarn.
And I’ve gotta say… it’s pretty darn cute.
So crank the volume ⬆️ & enjoy this rare ( for me at least ) audio of Rachel not actively destroying my property for once and Ruby whom I have never heard.
Both native rats .🐀🐀
Rachel white tailed rat , Uromys caudimaculatus , large up to 1kg restricted to North Queensland known for their incredibly strong teeth .
Ruby Rakali , Hydromys chrysogaster, (this one is a regular missing a foot so easy to recognise) , has a pretty rough backstory behind that cute face. Sounds familiar 🐊. Back in the late 1800s early 1900s, they were heavily hunted for fur. It was marketed as “Australian otter fur” to make it sound a bit fancier more flash than “rat,” and it actually became a decent little fur trade for a while. The problem was… they trapped them hard. Populations dropped a lot in some areas, & in places they pretty much disappeared.
Things turned around ; fur trade declined, they got legal protection & people began recognising them as native wildlife, not pests. These days they’ve made a solid comeback in many parts of Australia, though they still rely on healthy waterways to thrive.
The other sounds you can hear are
Crickets 🦗
Orange footed Scrub-fowl Native birds 🐦
Frogs 🐸
Chooks 🐓and ducks 🦆
So you have to listen carefully to hear 🐀🐀
They are on the megapode mound (scrubfowl ) in the chook pen and eating left over chook food I think. Chooks are locked up in a cage at night to keep them safe & then the fun begins .
#Rats
#queensland
#ratsareawesome
#ratsarecute
