NewsBreakingOnline

Conservationists on British archipelago to poison brown rats, which are wreaking havoc on precious bird populations The rat population on the Scilly islands of St Agnes and Gugh may not have quite reached Hamelin-like proportions. Nevertheless, the entire adult population of the two islands has backed plans by conservationists to rid the place of rodents. The problem is not that 3,100 brown rats menace the 70-odd human beings – but they are wreaking havoc on precious bird populations. Tony Whitehead, a spokesman for the bird conservation charity the RSPB, said rats were a problem across the Isles of Scilly, the archipelago lying 28 miles off the southwest coast of mainland Britain. Between 1983 and 2006 it was estimated that the bird population fell by almost 25%. “The availability of food is a major problem but the rats are also having a significant impact on birdlife,” said Whitehead. Two of the key species under threat by rats are the storm petrel and manx shearwater, both of which nest in burrows and so are easy prey for rodents. But the rats are not fussy and also target the Scilly shrew, only found on the islands, crabs and even limpets. A feasibility concluded that the rat population could be eradicated on St Agnes and Gugh, which are linked by a sandbar, because they are far enough away from other islands to make it impossible for other rats to swim across and take their places. The programme is also considered a priority because St Agnes and Gugh are close to an uninhabited island, Annet, which has hugely important colonies of seabirds and the fear is rats could reach there and cause devastation. The RSPB , Natural England and other local conservation groups are asking the European Commission for a grant of £160,000 to bring in pest-control experts to poison the rats. According to the groups, they asked every adult on the islands and nobody objected to the idea. “We’re all very pleased that they are going to try to get rid of the rats,” said Jimmy Paget-Brown, who runs a self-catering cottage on St Agnes. Many islands have armed themselves with vicious-looking rat traps and poison but a rat census found there are still between 20 and 25 rats per hectare. Paget-Brown insisted that it wasn’t obvious that the island was over-run by rats. “It’s not as if you see them running all over the place. I can’t remember the last time I saw one but of course they are there and we’d rather they weren’t.” Rats have been removed from the island of Lundy, off the coast of Devon, in recent years easing pressure on bird populations. It is not just a British problem. The RSPB is carrying out a rat eradication programme on Henderson Island in the south Pacific to try to protect birds including petrels. Conservation Animals RSPB Steven Morris guardian.co.uk