{"id":20806,"date":"2024-09-17T10:59:31","date_gmt":"2024-09-17T10:59:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mousefreemarion.org\/the-aerial-baiting-of-amsterdam-island-targeting-its-introduced-rodents-has-been-completed\/"},"modified":"2024-09-17T10:59:31","modified_gmt":"2024-09-17T10:59:31","slug":"the-aerial-baiting-of-amsterdam-island-targeting-its-introduced-rodents-has-been-completed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mousefreemarion.org\/de\/the-aerial-baiting-of-amsterdam-island-targeting-its-introduced-rodents-has-been-completed\/","title":{"rendered":"The aerial baiting of Amsterdam Island targeting its introduced rodents has been completed"},"content":{"rendered":"

Above picture: The bait-spreading bucket is lowered to the ground to be reloaded with cereal bait; photograph by <\/em>Lucie Pichot<\/em> As the Mouse-Free Marion (MFM<\/a><\/strong>) Project continues to work towards its 2027 target of eradicating the island\u2019s seabird-killing House Mice Mus musculus<\/em>, heartening news for the project team and supporters comes from France\u2019s sub-Antarctic Amsterdam Island<\/a><\/strong>, 3384 km away in the southern Indian Ocean. The project RECI<\/a><\/strong> (Restauration des \u00e9cosyst\u00e8mes insulaires de l\u2019oc\u00e9an Indien; Restoration of Insular Ecosystems of the Indian Ocean) has announced the completion of the baiting operation to eradicate Norway Rats Rattus norvegicus<\/em> and House Mice.

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The bait-spreading bucket is suspended below the helicopter on a long cable; photograph by Lucie Pichot<\/em><\/p><\/div> The first baiting application<\/a><\/strong> took place over 7-25 June 2024, dropping rodenticide-laced cereal bait over the 5800 ha island, including along the Entrecasteaux cliffs, utilizing a bait-spreading bucket suspended below a single-engine Airbus <\/a><\/strong>A350 B3 helicopter, known as a Squirrel. The helicopter was operated by a team from the R\u00e9union-based company Helilagon<\/a><\/strong>.
\nIn addition, rodenticide bait was spread by hand around the Martin-de-Vivi\u00e8s scientific station<\/a><\/strong>, with the baiting of interiors, inside ceilings and underneath buildings and field huts.
\nTo guarantee access to bait for all the island\u2019s rats and mice, including any young rodents not weaned at the time of the first application, a second bait treatment commenced on 5 July and was completed on 23 July.
\nA second manual treatment of the station buildings was also carried out during this time.

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Setting up a camera trap to detect rodents on Amsterdam; photograph by Lucie Pichot<\/em><\/p><\/div> During and on completion of the eradication operation the RECI team was also involved with: <\/p>\n