Changes in species composition of the Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the roof rat (R. rattus) in urban area

Yabe, Tatsuo

doi:10.7601/mez.48.285

Cited by 8 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…In an area in which a pest control company (PCO) operated, black rats infested 66% of all types of buildings, with Norway rats or mixed species of commensal rodents infesting the rest [18]. A similar situation was reported widely in Japan, including Sapporo, a city in the northern area [8][9][10][11]. Later, however, the black rat problem disappeared in Sapporo.…”

Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…From around the 1970s, the Japanese economy grew and big buildings with three floors or more rapidly increased in commercial districts [9][10][11] (Figure 2); many were connected with the catering industry. At the same time, though PCOs rapidly multiplied, black rats became successful in these areas.…”

Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Japan, house mice and Norway rats R. norvegicus are rare in buildings in the centers of big cities. Whereas black rat infestations have been experienced even in modern buildings in almost all big cities since the 1970s except those in the northern area [8][9][10][11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Prologue: Commensal Rodent Problems Across the Globe

Yabe¹

2021

Rodents

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Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Section: Changes In Species Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Prologue: Commensal Rodent Problems Across the Globe

Yabe¹

2021

Rodents

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“…The pest management professionals also expected this result based on their inspections, although the results of inspections were not officially recorded. The predominance of brown rats greatly contrasts the situation in most cities in Japan, where roof rats were reported to be predominant (Harunari et al 2009;Yabe 1997a;Yabe 1997b;Yabe et al 2000). Indeed, when rats were trapped in 27 buildings in three large cities in Japan, all of the 1,720 trapped rats were roof rats (Tanikawa et al 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Records of rat control campaigns in a food market with the largest seafood trading volume worldwide

et al. 2021

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Brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) and roof rats (Rattus rattus) are among the most common mammals worldwide. Little is known about the effects of season on rat population size, which is important for understanding rat ecology and/or performing effective rat control campaigns. Tsukiji Market was a metropolitan central wholesale market in Tokyo and was located within 1 km from one of the biggest downtown areas. To control rats in the market, a pest management professional exclusively conducted annual campaigns at two fixed time points for many years. In addition, the pest management professional successfully confined all rats to the market and exterminated them when the market was closed and demolished. We analyzed these records to assess whether this rat population in Tokyo showed seasonal fluctuation and to provide information regarding rat management in a facility located in a downtown area.Multiple regression analyses revealed that trap success was affected by human activities (total trading volume and number of foreign tourists in Japan), but not by the month the campaign was performed. These results suggest that the rat population in this market did not show seasonal fluctuation. The results also suggest the importance of the effect of human activities on the ecological dynamics of rats in urban cities.We also described details of the campaigns performed as the market prepared to close to provide information regarding how to control rats in facilities in a downtown area.

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“…For example, although no data are currently available, it is widely accepted that brown rats are predominant in North America (Battersby et al 2008 ). However, anecdotal evidence obtained from Japanese pest management professionals suggests that roof rats are predominant in Tokyo (Harunari et al 2009 ; Yabe 1997a , 1997b ; Yabe et al 2000 ). It is therefore possible that shifts in human activities differentially affect these two rat species and are associated with the differing outcomes in rat populations among countries.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social distancing measures differentially affected rats in North America and Tokyo

Kiyokawa

Tamada²,

Ootaki

et al. 2021

J Pest Sci

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Because rats are commensal organisms that depend on human activities for food, shifts in human behavior will have pronounced effects on local rat populations. In the spring of 2020, social distancing measures were implemented globally to curtail the spread of SARS-CoV-2. This presented a unique opportunity to obtain information regarding the immediate effects of shifts in human behavior on rat populations in a variety of countries. In response to increased sightings of rats in the USA that were reported in American media, we analyzed the changes in the number of public service calls in Tokyo, Japan. We found that the number of calls increased after the implementation of social distancing measures, suggesting that rat sightings had also increased in Tokyo. We then surveyed the changes in the business activities of pest management professionals in the USA, Canada, and Tokyo. We found that the activities were increased in 50 to 60% of the respondents from the USA and Canada. In contrast, 60 to 70% of the respondents from Tokyo answered that their activities were not changed. These results implied that, following the implementation of social distancing measures, rat infestations increased in North America, but not in Tokyo. The survey also suggested that roof rats were considered to be the predominant rodent species in Tokyo. This may account for the limited infestations in Tokyo because roof rats are more sedentary than brown rats. Taken together, our findings suggest that social distancing measures differentially affected rat populations in North America and Tokyo. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10340-021-01405-z.

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Changes in species composition of the Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the roof rat (R. rattus) in urban area

Cited by 8 publications

References 7 publications

Prologue: Commensal Rodent Problems Across the Globe

Prologue: Commensal Rodent Problems Across the Globe

Records of rat control campaigns in a food market with the largest seafood trading volume worldwide

Social distancing measures differentially affected rats in North America and Tokyo

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