CDC Warns Of Aggressive Cannibal Rats Facing Shortages Of Garbage To Eat

[appalachiablue]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by JudyM (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Last edited Tue May 26, 2020, 04:10 PM - Edit history (2)

Source: The Guardian

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned of "unusual or aggressive" behavior in American rats as a consequence of more than two months of human lockdown for city-dwelling rodents who now find themselves unable to dine out on restaurant waste, street garbage and other food sources.

Last month, according to the national health body, dumpster-diving rats were observed resorting to eating their young in the wake of urban shutdowns. "Community-wide closures have led to a decrease in food available to rodents, especially in dense commercial areas," the CDC said in recently updated rodent-control guidelines.

"Some jurisdictions have reported an increase in rodent activity as rodents search for new sources of food. Environmental health and rodent control programs may see an increase in service requests related to rodents and reports of unusual or aggressive rodent behavior."

Elevated levels of rat aggression has been observed in New York, where there are increased reports of cannibalism and infanticide, and New Orleans, where unusual rat behavior was caught on CCTV. I turn the corner, there's about 30 rats at the corner, feasting on something in the middle of the street," Bourbon street tour guide Charles Marsala told CBS News...

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/25/us-city-lockdowns-rat-aggression-lack-food-waste

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Rats have been on the rise in America before the coronavirus epidemic which has made it worse.

The rat problem is not only urban, they're active in suburbs as well, the pickings maybe better.

.



Suburban Colorado home rat infestation, 2018.

[DemoTex]

1. Is this article about the GOP?

Asking for a friend.

[appalachiablue]

3. In America rat populations have been rising before

Last edited Tue May 26, 2020, 04:15 PM - Edit history (1)

the coronavirus epidemic and 'food' shutdowns. They're even more ravenous now with slimmer pickings so beware.

- Report: CDC warns of hungry & aggressive rats due to restaurant closures from coronavirus lockdown.

[Canoe52]

15. Damn you beat me to it!

[JI7]

2. No chance of them just dying off ?

[LeftInTX]

5. Really

It's a good time to fill those bait boxes...I hate those suckers..

[Warpy]

7. Not while their diet is so varied

They eat a lot of things we don't consider edible like soap, glue, industrial chemicals.

While some will die off and be eaten by the rest, they will pick up their breeding as soon as restaurants reopen and the food supply increases.

[LeftInTX]

26. They will even eat pesticides and synthetic fertilizers

My garage is living proof!

[tinrobot]

4. Maybe we can feed them murder hornets.

[yaesu]

6. rats start acting like tRump when they take his whoppers away. nt

[Historic NY]

8. I thought this was about Republicans, they eat their own.

[Ferrets are Cool]

9. Until they begin attacking like the ones in Princess Bride...

I am not too concerned.

[Ford_Prefect]

10. Card Carrying GOP Members One and All...

[IronLionZion]

11. I wish my city would step up rat extermination now

these rats have set up large nests under abandoned buildings near food sources like restaurant dumpsters. There's less food in there now because of takeout so the rats are getting bolder and more aggressive. They're going to residential dumpsters since that's where the food is now.

[DBoon]

12. Willard!

[ToxMarz]

13. Rats eating each other, sounds like a win-win

[mbusby]

14. Where are...

...owls and hawks when you need them.

[appalachiablue]

21. +1 and good old cats, terrier-type dogs

[BunnyMcGee]

16. Oh good, the next plague is here

[appalachiablue]

18. The 17- year Cicadas are arriving this summer in

the eastern US. But they are fairly harmless (and not locusts) except for the racket of noise made by males thrumming to attract mates.

https://www.sciencealert.com/after-17-years-of-quiet-cicadas-are-set-to-deafen-parts-of-the-us

[soothsayer]

23. Unfortunately rats love to dine on them

We had a huge rat population explosion last time cicadas emerged.

[appalachiablue]

24. Then rats just biding their time in the Mid-Atlantic esp.

DC, PA, VA, NC. That's a real shame, feast time. I remember them in DC 1986, 3 cycles ago, my Cocker Spaniel enjoyed them as snacks.

[LudwigPastorius]

17. As if there's any more evidence needed that Trump is the antichrist...

I'm pretty sure Pestilence, Cannibal Rat, and Murder Hornet are 3 of the 4 horsemen of the Apocalypse.

[appalachiablue]

25. ...

[tblue37]

28. Plus volcanoes, earthquakes, and an extreme hurricane season. nt

[appalachiablue]

30. +5, wildfires

[tblue37]

31. Oh, yeah. And floods. nt

[appalachiablue]

32. Floods, food and medicine shortages, essential workers

stretched to the max. We need to form a large new, comprehensive 'disaster corps' and medical service specifically for the Apocalypse ahead- around the corner actually.

[roamer65]

19. In rat infested areas, just be extra careful with infants and bed ridden people.

If they are getting aggressive, they can bite.

[ffr]

20. That's okay. Aggressive or not, hawks & owls don't mind.

[LeftInTX]

27. I need a bobcat and a bunch of rat snakes in my quarter acre lot

Seriously rat snakes would do very well here. My lot is full of trees and we have roof rats, which live in trees. Unfortunately, the neighbors would probably kill the snakes.

[RhodeIslandOne]

22. .....

[oldsoftie]

29. MAybe now is the time to really kake a move on these vermin. The rats, I mean.

I hear there are more of them in NYC than people

[JudyM]

33. Locking

Alerted on for being over 12 hour limit. Oops.