New York to trial birth-control pills to reduce its rat problem
Contraceptive pellets will be placed in special rat-accessible traps starting next year, lowering their numbers humanely without endangering other animals or the environment, its supporters hope.
Monday 30 September 2024 15:02, UK
[IMG alt="A rat New York's Central Park.
Pic: istock"]https://e3.365dm.com/24/09/768x432/...central-park_6701472.jpg?20240930113726[/IMG]
Image:A rat in New York's Central Park. Pic: istock
New York has come up with a novel approach to its infamous rat problem - targeting the rodents with birth-control pills.
Under a plan approved by the city's council, contraceptive pellets will be placed in special rat-accessible traps in a small section of The Big Apple starting next year and the creatures will eat their way to a lower birth rate.
The containers will be checked every month to see how much is left, in order to gauge how the rodents are taking to the product, called Contrapest.
Senestech, the company that makes the plant-based product, claims it prevents rats from reproducing for 45 days per dose, reducing populations humanely without endangering other animals or the environment.
It's a more effective long-term solution to rat infestations than rodenticides, the firm claims, because their birth rate will always exceed the death rate.
If even a single male and female are left after poisons are used, they can turn into 15,000 descendants in little more than a year, the company said on its website.
It is non-toxic and poses no danger to other animals or the environment.
Non-toxic product reduces populations by 95%
Its ingredients induce a kind of menopause in females and limit sperm production in males and, delivered cumulatively over time, Contrapest reduces populations by 95%, according to Senestech's own research.
The 12-month pilot scheme has been dubbed "Flaco's Law" as it has been inspired by the city's famous Flaco the owl, PIX11 said.
Flaco captured the hearts of New Yorkers last year by escaping from the city's zoo and staying at liberty for a year before being found dead in February with rat poison in his system.
New York infested with rats
An estimated three million rats make New York their home, according to pest control firm MMPC, which based the figure on a widely-quoted 2014 study by Jonathan Auerbach and its methodology.
New York has long been famous for its rat problem, even more so in the age of social media as users post videos of rats scurrying around the city.
Anyone curious to find out more about them can take rat tours and last year, the city appointed its very own rat tsar, Kathleen Corradi, tasked with getting a grip on "public enemy No 1".
Council member Shaun Abreu, sponsoring the measure last week, said it would also help if more New Yorkers put their rubbish in bins.
When he introduced the bill in April, Mr Abreu said the city "can't poison" or "kill our way out of this."
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) welcomed what it called an "innovative approach", saying "hats off" to the council for putting "birth control over cruel, lethal methods such as poison and suffocation".
