Rat Control - 85
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Project Leader and Principal UC Investigators Terrell P. Salmon, Cooperative Extension Rex E. Marsh, Wildlife and Fisheries Biology, UC Davis Walter E. Howard, Wildlife and Fisheries Biology, UC Davis |
(Funded by the University of California Integrated Pest Management Project.)Objectives
Summary of ResultsThere was little difference in habitat suitability between burned and unburned rice fields. However, fall disking and working the land to be left fallow for a year greatly reduced rat populations. Rats prefer to colonize ditch banks where water and vegetative cover are available. A paraffin-grain bait-block consumption test provided the most accurate assessment of rat numbers, but it is time consuming and may not be practical for farmers. Tooth marks on wood stakes is a more suitable method for farm use. Rat control often used zinc phosphide grain bait applied by hand or broadcast. Other methods are anticoagulant baits and burrow fumigants. These controls should be combined with weed control on levees and ditches and fall disking. Laser-leveled fields have fewer levees and, thus, provide less harborage for rats. Project Leaders: Terrell P. Salmon, Cooperative Extension; and Rex E. Marsh and Walter E. Howard, Wildlife and Fisheries Biology, University of California, Davis.
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