The whole truth about the rat invasion of Australia. What is happening (and why)

Is Australia really totally overrun by armies of mice, as evidenced by some newspapers? What is happening and why? Let's try to shed some light.

He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him

In recent days, images of millions of mice that are invading some areas of Australia have appeared in all the newspapers. The phenomenon has already caused considerable damage to agriculture and to citizens struggling with rodents even inside their homes. But what exactly is happening and why? Is Australia really totally overrun by armies of mice, as evidenced by some newspapers? Let's try to shed some light.

I hate to sound like a broken record but they’re still here, so I’ll risk it. #australia #mouseplague #tullamore #nsw pic.twitter.com/2MRpbiiNzR

— Lucy Thackray (@LucyThack) May 12, 2021

Index

What caused the invasion of the mice?

The first question to answer is definitely: where did all these mice come from? It all comes from the summer rains, which caused real floods and record harvests after a long period of drought. In fact, rodents manage to survive drought and reproduce very quickly as soon as water and food become abundant again.

“We had a drought and now the drought has basically stopped, so the mice adapt to that environmental change and start reproducing,” explains expert Steve Henry who works at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization. "The farmers have had a good harvest, so there are favorable weather conditions, a lot of food available, good shelter and a lot of humidity."

Even if grain’s in silos, mice can get to it. Like Tyler Jones discovered in Tullamore when cleaning out the auger and it started raining mice #mouseplague #mice #australia pic.twitter.com/mWOHNWAMPv

— Lucy Thackray (@LucyThack) May 12, 2021

No, not all of Australia is overrun with rats

So is all of Australia grappling with this rodent invasion? The answer is no. The phenomenon is affecting the eastern areas of the country, in particular New South Wales (among the most affected by last year's drought and devastating fires), southern Queensland and the northern area of the State of Victoria. In these Australian territories, mice are causing serious damage to agriculture and entering homes, devouring the food they find and even slip into washing machines.

Look closely. From a washing machine tonight on a farm at Tallimba near West Wyalong.#mouseplague @LucyThack pic.twitter.com/VQk1rwumT1

— NSW Farmers (@NSWFarmers) May 13, 2021

In fact, this is not the first time such an event has occurred in Australia, where rodent invasions of this magnitude generally occur once every ten years.

Damage caused by rodents

The rat raid is putting a strain on the agriculture sector. The farmers of the affected areas are exhausted and according to many it would be the worst invasion of rodents in recent years.

"Some farmers are abandoning their crops because the mice have damaged them badly, so it is essentially a total loss of the crop" - emphasizes the scientist Steve Henry - "And in many cases, the crops that have been saved are full of feces. mouse".

Some farmers have lost up to A $ 300.000 each to rodent damage. Australian citizens are also worried venomous snakes, which feed on mice and are hunting for this species and could therefore grow and reproduce at a faster rate.

Early canola has good spots as well as mice damage places. Every bare spot has mouse holes in the centre. #MICE pic.twitter.com/EcCBGtRoqv

— Craig S (@CKMonty) May 18, 2021

The methods used to cope with the invasion of mice

At the moment, the methods used by Australian citizens to solve the mouse problem have proved rather unsuccessful. A survey conducted by the association NSW Farmers revealed that most of the farmers surveyed had tried to control the rat invasion since early spring, but with little success.

Many have decided to opt for poisons and traps, but the use of some substances dangerous for the environment and the Australian fauna has alerted some animal welfare organizations including PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), which is urging residents of affected areas to avoid poisoning the mice.

"This cruel method of killing not only subjects innocent mice to unbearably painful deaths, but also poses the risk of spreading bacteria in the water as the carcasses of mice end up in water tanks," notes PETA spokesperson Aleesha Naxakis.

And in fact, the abuse of poisons would put many other species at risk, starting with cats, dogs and birds. For this reason, scientists at the Danish Pest Infestation Laboratory are evaluating an alternative to the classic poison, capable of killing mice only, without harming other animals. For the time being, it seems that Australians must learn to live with rodents until a more effective solution to the problem is found.

Source: Twitter/News.com.au/ABC News/NSW Farmers