Oh, it’s a rat!
Researchers have reportedly clarified the surprising origins of a unique landmark in Chicago, known as the “rat hole.”
And it turns out, it’s not what many had imagined. It wasn’t hidden back alley bars or the rundown apartments associated with the city’s notorious gangsters.
Instead, the rat hole is a full-length impression of a creature that got stuck in wet cement on a sidewalk in the Roscoe Village area approximately 20 to 30 years ago. This mark resembles an outstretched sea rat, complete with small claws, limbs, and what seems to be a tail.
The rat hole gained viral popularity early last year after comedian Winslow Dumaine shared a photo of it on the TV show “X.” This led to a stream of curious visitors, some even leaving coins and other odd tokens around the site as mementos.
However, such constant foot traffic didn’t sit well with local residents, leading someone in April 2024 to fill the impression with a plaster-like material. Eventually, city crews took the sidewalk slab to City Hall and the County Courthouse, while a plaque commemorating Mouse Hole still remains at the original location.
Researchers from the University of Tennessee, the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the University of Calgary published findings in Biology Letters, suggesting that these impressions were likely made by squirrels or muskrats, rather than the expected rats.
The researchers analyzed online images of rat holes, comparing measurements to specimens of local animals. The existence of limbs and a tail helped rule out birds, snakes, frogs, and turtles. The shape of the claws also pointed away from the typical rodent family, narrowing it down to squirrels, chipmunks, and muskrats.
Interestingly, the longer forelimbs, third toe, and rear feet measured too large for a rat but aligned with gray squirrels, fox squirrels, and muskrats. The study leaned towards the eastern gray squirrel being the most probable creator, reflecting its prevalence in the Chicago area.
While the study did take into account alternative theories suggesting it was squirrels that made the impressions, it noted that since cement is usually wet during the day when rats are not active, it implies a squirrel might have missed its jump or fallen from a branch into the wet mixture.
The absence of a bushy tail in the tracks was noted, as hair typically doesn’t leave a clear mark, making the presence of such tracks unlikely.
“We thus propose to rename this specimen ‘Windy City Sidewalk Squirrel’,” they suggested, finding a name that seems more fitting to its actual origins and the evidence available.
