rodents

Lord Howe Island declared its rats eradicated, then scientists found suspicious rodents; DNA is revealing whether they are survivors or new invaders

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Lord Howe Island declared its rats eradicated, then scientists found suspicious rodents; DNA is revealing whether they are survivors or new invaders

Lord Howe Island was considered free of rats after its rodent eradication programme ended in 2019. The last rat was detected on 9 October that year. However, black rats were found again in the island’s settlement area in April 2021.Scientists needed to determine whether these rodents had survived the eradication programme or arrived later. According … Read more

In 2021, Australian scientists sprayed wheat scent across farm plots to confuse hungry mice; the treatment reduced seed loss by up to 74% in a field experiment without poisoning the rodents

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In 2021, Australian scientists sprayed wheat scent across farm plots to confuse hungry mice; the treatment reduced seed loss by up to 74% in a field experiment without poisoning the rodents

​Wheat seed loss fell 63% after wheat germ oil treatment (Representational AI image) Australian scientists have tested a non-toxic way to protect wheat seeds from hungry mice by making it harder for the rodents to locate them. In an experiment carried out in 2021, instead of poisoning the mice or using bait, the researchers sprayed … Read more

Scientists removed kangaroo rats from desert plots for 13 years, revealing how the rodents shape vegetation in the Chihuahuan Desert

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Scientists removed kangaroo rats from desert plots for 13 years, revealing how the rodents shape vegetation in the Chihuahuan Desert

PC: Connor Long/Wikipedia In the Chihuahuan Desert, kangaroo rats play an important role in shaping vegetation. Between 1977 and 1990, researchers excluded three kangaroo rat species from experimental plots to see how their absence affected plants and other animals. The 13-year experiment found that two grasses became significantly more abundant in plots without the rodents … Read more

Why do humans fall in love? The answer may lie in a small rodent from the American Midwest |

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Why do humans fall in love? The answer may lie in a small rodent from the American Midwest |

Love has inspired poetry, started wars, forged lifelong partnerships, and broken countless hearts. It can feel overwhelming, irrational, and unexplainable. Yet some of the most important clues about why humans fall in love don’t come from the study of lovers, philosophers or poets. Instead, they come from a small brown rodent that runs across the … Read more