Fishing town inundated by plague of rats
Communities along the Gulf of Carpentaria in Queensland have been inundated by a plague of rats, with the rodents washing up along the shores in the thousands.
Locals and tourists have shared videos of rats washing up on the beaches of Karumba, a popular fishing town that is struggling with the "plague".
One local resident took to Facebook to share their experience, writing, “We headed down for our nightly fishing expedition to find the beach littered with washed-up rats.”
“We are unable to fish off the beaches at the moment due to the number of them and the smell.”
The same local described dead rats floating in the water or washing up on the shore, with those animals that survived looking a little worse for wear.
Kerry D Fishing Charters owner Jemma Probert told 7News the smell of the dead and dying rats was “horrible”.
“They are jumping into the water and trying to swim but end up drowning and washing back up on the beach leaving a horrible smell,” she said.
Experts say that the influx of rats to the state is due to consistent rainfall, and the subsequent increased crop harvests, as the rodents have flocked to the area looking for food.
According to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the rat population has been steadily increasing since 2021, with the plague of mice and rats slowly heading north to more tropical climates.
“Mouse populations have reached plague conditions not seen since 2011,” CSIRO researcher Steve Henry said.
“This is largely due to favourable climatic conditions which have created optimal conditions for mice to breed.”
Locals have also shared their theories on the influx of their rat visitors, with many speculating that ecent bushfires in the area may be causing the mass exodus of rats leaving burning bushland.
“This happened back in the ’90s here in Karumba,” one local said. “They came ashore after (we) had fires in the area.”
Locals are worried the unwelcome visitors may have a detrimental effect on the local tourism industry.
“I have no idea why they are here but I hope they go quickly as this is not nice for tourists,” Probert said.
“They have tried to crawl onto our boat while we are fishing with customers on board and we have had to flick them off with a stick.”
Image credits: Facebook