It's the gerbil's fault ...

[DJofSD]

... not the black rat.

For what? The Plague.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-31588671

Black rats may not have been to blame for numerous outbreaks of the bubonic plague across Europe, a study suggests.

Scientists believe repeat epidemics of the Black Death, which arrived in Europe in the mid-14th Century, instead trace back to gerbils from Asia.

I wonder if this is settled science.

[HUSKER55]

well....it is settled for those who caught the plague... :D

[DJofSD]

I wonder if we should now change the lyrics to poems like "This Is the House that Jack Built" to use gerbil instead of rat. It's only fair.