‘Invincible super rats’ are taking over US cities – and it may be our fault, experts say
SUPER rats are plaguing cities around the country, and it doesn’t look like they’ll stop any time soon.
Cities like New York and Chicago have used extermination crews, so-called "rat perfume" and even booze to fight vermin - but poison could be the reason they continue to thrive.
Unlike your typical rodent, these genetically mutated rats are larger than average and resistant to conventional rat poisons.
Short-term rat control campaigns can have a Darwinian effect on vermin populations in populous cities.
Though most colonies are successfully wiped out, says the surviving population is more “fit” for evolution and therefore likely to have certain traits to protect them from the next onslaught of poisons.
These “super rats” then produce more baby rats which inherit the same traits, according to University of Richmond biology professor and rat expert Jonathan Richardson.
";These beneficial gene variants have been observed in some natural populations of rats regularly exposed to poison," according to Richardson.
Additionally, most poisons are not species-specific and often end up bioaccumulating, or becoming highly concentrated, in the animals that remain.
However, they say the most effective way to fight off urban pests is also the most simple - better trash disposal and rodent-proof garbage cans.
Researchers found that rats were attracted to areas sprayed with a so-called "rat perfume" containing female pheromones and visited them more than areas with male pheromones, according to the .
Their study argues that using pheromone technology as rat control is much more effective than conventional rat traps because it's nearly impossible for rodents to develop an immunity against pheromones even with repeated exposure.
An alcoholic rat-dunking device was unveiled in New York City in September.
The device, called Ekomille, baits rodents with food, then drops them through a trap door into a non-toxic alcoholic solution that knocks the rats unconscious and eventually drowns them.
Ekomille can hold up to 80 rat carcasses in its built-in bucket.
An estimated 2 million rats live in New York City, which equals about 25% of the city's 8 million residents.