A rat eradication program has been launched on two B.C. islands in an effort to protect seabird populations that are being threatened by the rodents.
With the aim being to kill every single rat, 400 bait stations have been set up on Arichika and Bischof Islands in Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve on Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands).
The rats are responsible for decimating songbird and seabird populations on the islands, says Gregg Howald, North America regional director of Island Conservation, one of the organizations involved in the project along with Parks Canada and others.
After ingesting the poisonous bait from the stations, which are placed at 50-metre intervals, the rats have time to retreat to their burrows before they die, says Howald. However, crews will be checking to collect any that die above ground.
Getting rid of the rats is part of a project that aims to restore seabird colonies—particularly ancient murrelet populations—that were hard hit by oil leaking from the S.S. Jacob Luckenbach, a freighter that sank in 1953 about 17 miles southwest of the Golden Gate Bridge in Los Angeles.
In 2002, the Luckenbach was identified as the source of many mystery oil spills that occurred periodically during winter storms. The spills resulted in the oiling of thousands of seabirds along northern California beaches for decades.
Haida Gwaii is a major nesting place for ancient murrelets, and with the rats gone for good the birds, listed a species at risk by Canada, will have a better chance of rebuilding their numbers.
“Over half the world’s population [of ancient murrelets] breeds in Haida Gwaii,” says Howald. “We’re creating more breeding habitat for them.”
It is believed that rats initially arrived on the islands in the late 1700s, probably brought there by the Spanish who first made contact in 1792. The rats jumped ship and made the islands their home.
With the aim being to kill every single rat, 400 bait stations have been set up on Arichika and Bischof Islands in Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve on Haida Gwaii (formerly Queen Charlotte Islands).
The rats are responsible for decimating songbird and seabird populations on the islands, says Gregg Howald, North America regional director of Island Conservation, one of the organizations involved in the project along with Parks Canada and others.
After ingesting the poisonous bait from the stations, which are placed at 50-metre intervals, the rats have time to retreat to their burrows before they die, says Howald. However, crews will be checking to collect any that die above ground.
Getting rid of the rats is part of a project that aims to restore seabird colonies—particularly ancient murrelet populations—that were hard hit by oil leaking from the S.S. Jacob Luckenbach, a freighter that sank in 1953 about 17 miles southwest of the Golden Gate Bridge in Los Angeles.
In 2002, the Luckenbach was identified as the source of many mystery oil spills that occurred periodically during winter storms. The spills resulted in the oiling of thousands of seabirds along northern California beaches for decades.
Haida Gwaii is a major nesting place for ancient murrelets, and with the rats gone for good the birds, listed a species at risk by Canada, will have a better chance of rebuilding their numbers.
“Over half the world’s population [of ancient murrelets] breeds in Haida Gwaii,” says Howald. “We’re creating more breeding habitat for them.”
It is believed that rats initially arrived on the islands in the late 1700s, probably brought there by the Spanish who first made contact in 1792. The rats jumped ship and made the islands their home.
