Urban Norway and black rats can have diverse and significant negative impacts on urban landscapes and residents. A variety of different approaches have been developed for measuring rat populations to support management efforts. However, the utility of these approaches has been limited, as they account for the magnitude, but not the consequences of infestations and thus may not reflect the harms that cities are ultimately seeking to mitigate. We propose an alternative approach through the development of a ‘rat risk index’. A ‘rat risk index’ (RRI) could be developed by combining existing measures of rat presence and abundance (i.e., ‘rat infestation magnitude’ or RIM) with novel measures of rat-related impacts (i.e., ‘rat infestation consequences’ or RIC). In other words:
RRI = RIM x RIC
Such an index would be particularly useful for goal setting, program evaluation, and prioritization in the context of municipal rat management programs (click here for more information). Currently, the Vancouver Rat Project (vancouverratproject.ca), a CWHC-affiliated research program, is starting a five-year project to pilot the development and implementation of the RRI.
Read the full journal article here: https://wildlife.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jwmg.70052