This June 2024 photo provided by Aleut Community of St. Paul Island Ecosystem Conservation Office shows a rat trap that was placed under a residential building on St. Paul Island, Alaska, after a resident reported an alleged sighting.
Rodents have been removed successfully from hundreds of islands worldwide — including one in Alaska’s Aleutian chain formerly known as “Rat Island,” according to the U.S.
Around the developed areas of St. Paul, officials have set out blocks of wax — “chew blocks” — designed to record any telltale incisor bites.
Still, it took nearly a year to catch the last known rat on St. Paul, which was believed to have hopped off a barge.
The success of what was long called Rat Island, a tract in the Aleutians roughly half the size of Manhattan, shows how effective eradication programs can be.
Persons:
stow, upending, we’ve, ”, Lauren Divine, Paul, Divine, —, Paul ., Stacey Buckelew, Buckelew, Donald Lyons, “ It’s, I’ve
Organizations:
Aleut, St, U.S . Fish, Wildlife Service, U.S . Department, Agriculture, Fish, Alaska Maritime National Wildlife, Hawadax, National Audubon
Locations:
JUNEAU, Alaska, Bering, Paul, Pribilof, St, Paul Island , Alaska, U.S, Aleutians, Manhattan