Invasive rats on North West Island near Gladstone have been wiped out from the island rookery after more than three years.
The Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) says invasive black rats were reported to them in November 2022 by campground hosts.
Rangers deployed remote cameras and monitoring stations which confirmed that black rats had spread throughout the island; a single breeding pair of black rats can create a population of thousands inside a year, the QPWS explains.
The rodents are omnivorous; they will eat seabirds, their eggs and chicks, vegetation, turtle eggs and hatchlings.
A sustained ground and eradication project became a priority for QPWS and Gidarjil land and sea rangers.
RATS SPREAD
Senior Ranger Damon Shearer says the rodents that were on the island were most likely stowaways on boats or in camping equipment of visitors.
“The November 2022 confirmation that black rats had spread around the island was disappointing because mice were declared as eradicated from the island just three months earlier,” Shearer says.
“Due to the size of the island, dropping aerial baits by helicopter was the most effective form of treatment but we used bait stations and trapping to reduce the impacts on seabirds and turtles.”
He says their eradication program took 18 months and involved a frequent change of tactics to adapt to a change in behaviour.
After the program finished, rangers monitored the island for any signs of survivors.
“Twelve months of intensive monitoring has shown no evidence of black rats; rangers and Gidarjil rangers are proud of the hard work that went into protecting the island,” Shearer says.
“As the school holidays approach, we’re asking visitors to North West Island to check all equipment for rats and mice before departure and to arrive at the island pest-free.”
Feral animals can be reported to the department by calling 13 74 68 (13 QGOV).
North West Island is a seabird and turtle rookery in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area; it is situated in the Capricornia Cays National Park about 75 kilometres north-east of Gladstone.
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