The southern cotton rat is a medium-sized rodent with thick fur. It lives in grassy areas of southern North America, Mexico, and Central America.
The southern cotton rat differs from related species by its coarser fur and preference for damp grassy thickets. It serves as important prey for snakes, birds of prey, and mammals and helps spread plant seeds.
meadows, prairies, forb glades on land
homogamy, reproduction always with fertilization, no alternation of generations
Whiskers count
Worker
Tail size
birth time
breeding
Dogs, dolphins, lynx hang out for 9-25 years and party on their birthday three times a year
m
Map
will celebrate their {n} birthday
g
t
When your next jubilee falls in {name} life years
Human
days
South and Central America, hot and humid, huge forests
Warm summer
How old you would be if you lived as {name}
summer from pleasant to very hot
Theoretical maximum lifespan estimated from the Dynamic Energy Budget (DEB) mathematical model. This value reflects a biological potential derived from metabolic parameters, not from direct observation — real recorded lifespans are often significantly shorter.
adult
Maturity
South and Central America, hot and humid, huge forests
invertebrates
About health
When your next birthday would fall if you lived as {name}
Repro interval
results
protection from predators
Eyes count
summer warm, winter not very cold
Colors
Sex
Upcoming jubilees
Gremllins
mo
hot, rains in summer, little precipitation in winter
conifer cones
little precipitation in winter, more in summer
Trophic type
all living animals without backbone
Filters
Warm or hot summer
grass
always hot and humid, huge trees and vines
Upcoming birthdays
Breeding structure built or used for laying eggs and raising offspring.
eggs, roe or offspring develop in a nest built on the ground or close to it
Truly long lives: 40-100 years. Bowhead whales, albatrosses, giant tortoises recall their birthday at most once a year
Lifespan
nest on the ground
young are born live on land, not hatched from eggs or roe
Age (juvenile)
Age (from birth to death)
cones of coniferous trees with seeds
Hot, little precipitation in winter
Age (embryo)
most of Europe and Asia, various forests, steppes and tundra
Wanderers
world of Australasia
Jubilee = every 10th birthday
Earliest developmental stage inside an egg or womb.
Business sausages
fruits
roots
Lifespan average
nest located directly on the ground surface on land, only the mother provides parental care for the offspring
in a terrestrial nest
leaves
Whiskers size
gnaws and bites off aboveground parts of plants
grasses
live birth
What do they look like?
Maturity
emergence (insects)
end of lifespan
hot, there is a dry season, trees shed their leaves
How do they live?
fertilization / egg laying
How do they behave?
birth / hatching
metamorphosis / end of larval stage
end of acceleration
Share
seeds
Find a pet...
Mature, fully developed individual capable of reproduction.
65 to 130 grams, 25 – 60 centimeters
Pets
Nearctic realm
Indomalayan realm
terrestrial shrubland
Tropical dry broadleaf forest
Feeding occurs primarily on land or in vegetation.
{name} jubilee
terrestrial shrub habitats — maquis, chaparral, bush
cm
Old-timers
Find an animal or breed...
turns
Rascals
terrestrial forest
terrestrial herbaceous
Tail color
Litter size
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
How to care for them?
Living from 25 to 40 years. Orangutans, bald eagles, African elephants celebrate their birthday twice a year
grazing
°C
Not specified
Where are they found?
steppe
herbivore
Feeds by cropping or nibbling low-growing vegetation or algae.
Low precipitation in winter
Legendary longevity: over 100 years. Galapagos tortoises, Greenland sharks, ocean quahogs celebrate with family once every 4 years
Offspring
Tropical moist forest
Elders
leaves and stems of grasses and other herbaceous vegetation
Bro
normal sexual
Taxons
seeds, berries, fruits
if born as {name}
age
birth date
Palearctic realm
rest
Fur color
Close
was
Career from 7 to 15 months. Dwarf hamsters, voles, field crickets celebrate their birthday twice a month
The basics
Neotropical realm
My weight?
Non-stop carnival: they only live a few days. Mayflies, rotifers, midges celebrate their birthday more than twice a day
primary food sources
Neotropical realm
teeth
Potential Habitat
d
In husbandry
On the go from 1.3 to 3.5 years. Forest mice, anoles, rainbow fish party on their birthday once a month
Mass
young shoots and leaves of plants
Mosquitoes, fruit flies, small crustaceans hustle for up to 7 months and throw a birthday party every week
terrestrial
Plants
Gestation
islands and part of Australia, many unusual animals and plants
land
{name} birthday
Nearctic realm
grass
Always hot
plant leaves
No results found
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
On the map
all life stages
Female ♀
nest located directly on the ground surface on land
Map data sources: Ecosystem classification — IUCN Global Ecosystem Typology (Keith et al., 2022), indicative distribution maps Keith et al. (2020), https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3546513; Large Marine Ecosystems — NOAA LME Program; Bathymetry — GEBCO Bathymetric Compilation Group (2026), GEBCO_2026 Grid, https://doi.org/10.5285/4f68d5c7-45eb-f999-e063-7086abc036fa; Climate data — Generated using Copernicus Climate Change Service information; Species occurrence data — GBIF.org, Derived dataset "all animals", https://zveriki.com/dataset/dataset.tsv; Terrestrial ecoregions — RESOLVE Ecoregions 2017 (Dinerstein et al., 2017), CC BY 4.0
Potential habitat modelled from GBIF occurrence data. Map © Zveriki.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
birth year
lots of grass, few trees, rains occur
Shelter used specifically for reproduction or nesting.
Maturity
bird eggs
terrestrial habitat, land surface outside water
sq mm
yr
How similar?
Male ♂
until the celebration
baby / chick
age as {name}
How do they breed?
On the go from 3.5 to 6 years. Hedgehogs, crows, lizards treat themselves to birthday snacks 6 times a year
What if eaten?
Neither
from birth to adulthood
Young offspring still dependent on parental care.
nest
caring mother
What do they eat?
Where do they live?
Immature individual that has not yet reached reproductive maturity.
from birth to death
Hard dental structures used to bite, tear, or scrape food.
forests on land — tropical, temperate, boreal
Duration
This is me
Gamers
How are they built?
Temperate steppe
mm
Theoretical lifespan
ml
Stars
Link copied
My age?
wk
My size?
terrestrial
Asexual
swap
roots and plant tubers
Southeast Asia and islands, always hot and humid
Rabbits, falcons, red-eared turtles hang out for 6-9 years and party on their birthday four times a year
Where do they take shelter?
Denotes a grassland or steppe habitat preference.
inhabit and develop on land, outside water bodies
celebrated their {n} birthday
When you would have been born if you lived as {name}
very hot all year round, frequent rains, but sometimes dry
Daddies
Lifespan maximum
Hermaphrodite ⚥
North America and Greenland, from tundra to forests
embryo
Carrot
eggs
Length
kg
Observations
◉{N} more on tap