MICE RAIN: Australia:
The government of New South Wales (NSW) in Australia has extended a support package of $50 million to farmers to deal with a devastating mouse plague that has affected farmers, community members, and residents.
- To control the plague, the government has now authorized the use of an otherwise outlawed poison called
- The current plague is being called one of the worst plagues in decades and started being reported around mid-March in Australia’s eastern states.
- In some places, residents of affected areas reported mice falling out from rooftops causing “mice rain”.
- Researchers attribute the plague to an unusually abundant grain harvest, which caused a surplus of mice earlier in the season.
- Add to this the fact that mice have a short breeding cycle (a pair of breeding mice can give birth to a new litter every 21 days or so) and are not very choosy about food.
- Rodents (which includes rats and mice) are the second most successful mammals on the planet after humans.
- Rodents are capable of destroying food grains and can cause widespread damage to domestic households, commercial businesses, farms, manufacturers,, and livestock
- Further, rodents can not only gnaw through materials but can also ruin supplies by excreting them.
- Rodents can also cause diseases such as leptospirosis and typhus fever. They can also carry fleas or ticks that can harm pets and humans.
