Rat Infestations Are a Global Problem. Is Birth Control the Solution?

Not every politician is willing to admit they owe their election to rats. But Laura Mikulski, city councilwoman for Ferndale, Michigan isn’t shy about attributing her political career—literally—to skeevy, long-tailed rodents. Mikulski, who educated herself in all things rat control, is the co-founder of the Ferndale Rat Patrol. She created a citizens’ movement to accurately assess the local scope of its burgeoning rat problem, embrace less environmentally harmful methods of pest control, and even host a month-long census, called Traptoberfest, in which participants win gold-painted spring trap trophies for bringing in the most dead rats. “Nobody knows Laura Mikulski,” the councilwoman, who won election in 2019, says. “But they all love The Rat Lady.” [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] If Mikulski’s political path thus far sounds unlikely, it’s nothing compared to her next move: guide Ferndale as it embarks on its first experiment with rodent fertility. As in, birth control for rats. Courtesy SenesTechContraPest, the birth control for rats. Inside a ContraPest kit, there is a bait station and a feeder tray. In April, Ferndale will begin trialing one of the more innovative weapons in the anti-rat arsenal: a product, called Contrapest, that has the potential to change the way cities around the world address their own rat situations by limiting the rodents’ ability to reproduce. Senestech, the company ...
Source: TIME: Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Uncategorized animals feature freelance Source Type: news