Conservation groups have been eradicating rats on islands off the coasts of Mexico since the mid-1990s. Time after time, the work proves beneficial to birds and other native wildlife. Here are examples from a paper published in a 2011 monograph titled Island Invasives: Eradication and Management.
After just two years without rats on Farallón de San Ignacio, the number of Red-billed Tropicbird nests increased 60 percent. Hatching success and the development of juveniles also improved.
On Isabel Island, Sooty Terns nested again a few years after being extirpated.
On Rasa Island, the breeding success of Heermann’s Gull increased five times and the number of Elegant Terns rose from 55,000 to 200,000.
On San Pedro Mártir, Xantus’s Murrelets nested again after decades of extirpation, and on San Roque, Brandt’s Cormorant and…
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BirdWatching (Digital) - 1 Issue, November/December 2021