In this study, the ecological effects of culling programs are considered in the context of rodent pest management.Despite the escalation of rodent problems globally, over the past quarter of a century there have not b...In this study, the ecological effects of culling programs are considered in the context of rodent pest management.Despite the escalation of rodent problems globally, over the past quarter of a century there have not been many newdevelopments in culling programs directed at managing these populations. There is a strong reliance on broad scaleuse of chemical rodenticides or other lethal methods of control. The ecological consequences of culling programsbased on chemical rodenticides and bounty systems are considered. Although rodents cause tremendous economichardship to people on a continental scale, usually less than 10% of species cause substantial impacts. Indeed, manyspecies of rodent provide important “ecological services” and, given that culling programs rarely distinguishbetween rodent species, often the non-pest rodents are at grave risk. Rodent control is conducted with littleappreciation of what proportion of the population would need to be culled for a significant reduction in economicdamage. In Indonesian rice fields, once rodent densities are high then a reduction in yield loss from 30% to 15%would require more than 75% of the population to be culled;a reduction to less than 5% yield loss would requiremore than a 95% cull. The negative ecological consequences of culling can be better managed if the method isspecifically tailored to the species that need to be managed. A greater emphasis on ecologically-based rodentmanagement would assist markedly in reducing the unwanted and unintended effects of culling.展开更多
文摘In this study, the ecological effects of culling programs are considered in the context of rodent pest management.Despite the escalation of rodent problems globally, over the past quarter of a century there have not been many newdevelopments in culling programs directed at managing these populations. There is a strong reliance on broad scaleuse of chemical rodenticides or other lethal methods of control. The ecological consequences of culling programsbased on chemical rodenticides and bounty systems are considered. Although rodents cause tremendous economichardship to people on a continental scale, usually less than 10% of species cause substantial impacts. Indeed, manyspecies of rodent provide important “ecological services” and, given that culling programs rarely distinguishbetween rodent species, often the non-pest rodents are at grave risk. Rodent control is conducted with littleappreciation of what proportion of the population would need to be culled for a significant reduction in economicdamage. In Indonesian rice fields, once rodent densities are high then a reduction in yield loss from 30% to 15%would require more than 75% of the population to be culled;a reduction to less than 5% yield loss would requiremore than a 95% cull. The negative ecological consequences of culling can be better managed if the method isspecifically tailored to the species that need to be managed. A greater emphasis on ecologically-based rodentmanagement would assist markedly in reducing the unwanted and unintended effects of culling.
