Wildlife and People at Risk: A Plan to Keep Rats Out of Alaska Ellen I. Fritts Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Wildlife Conservation October 2007 STATE OF ALASKA Sarah Palin, Governor DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Denby Lloyd, Commissioner DIVISION OF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION Doug Larsen, Director For information about formats that may be available, contact our publications specialist: Publications Specialist ADF&G, Wildlife Conservation P.O. Box 115526 Juneau, AK 99811-5526 (907) 465-4176 Email: [email protected] © 2007 Alaska Department of Fish and Game This document should be cited as: Fritts, E. I. 2007. Wildlife and People at Risk: A Plan to Keep Rats Out of Alaska. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Juneau Alaska. 190 pp. This version, updated 10/23/07, should replace all prior web versions. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) administers all programs and activities free from discrimination based on race, color, national origin, age, sex, religion, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, or disability. The department administers all programs and activities in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. If you believe you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility please write: ♦ ADF&G ADA Coordinator, PO Box 115526, Juneau, AK 99811-5526. The department’s ADA Coordinator can be reached via phone at the following numbers: (VOICE) 907-465-6077, (Statewide Telecommunication Device for the Deaf) 1-800-478-3648, (Juneau TDD) 907-465-3646, or (FAX) 907- 465-6078. ♦ U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4040 N Fairfax Drive, Suite 300 Webb, Arlington, VA 22203, or; ♦ Office of Equal Opportunity, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington DC 20240 For information on alternative formats and questions on this publication, please contact the following: ♦ Publications Specialist, ADF&G/Division of Wildlife Conservation, PO Box 115526, Juneau, AK 99811- 5526, or call 907-465-4176. Cover graphic by Katherine Hocker, ADF&G. Wildlife and People at Risk: A Plan to Keep Rats Out of Alaska Ellen I. Fritts Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Wildlife Conservation October 2007 Table of Contents Abstract......................................................................................................................................... iv Executive Summary: Keeping Rats Out of Alaska.................................................................... v Findings ...................................................................................................................................................vi Conclusion..............................................................................................................................................vii Recommendations ..................................................................................................................................vii 1.0 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1 1.1 BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THIS PLAN.......................................................................................1 1.2 THE PROBLEM WITH NONNATIVE AND INVASIVE SPECIES.................................................................2 1.3 VULNERABILITY OF ISLAND SPECIES AND ECOSYSTEMS ...................................................................3 1.3.1 Islands Hard Hit by Extinctions.............................................................................................................4 1.3.2 Biodiversity and Abundance Decrease ..................................................................................................4 1.3.3 Devastation can be Rapid and Complete...............................................................................................5 2.0 INVASIVE RODENTS OF CONCERN......................................................................... 7 2.1 NONNATIVE RODENTS IN ALASKA .....................................................................................................7 2.1.1 The Norway Rat .....................................................................................................................................7 2.1.2 The Roof Rat ..........................................................................................................................................9 2.1.3 Rat Behavior is Predictable.................................................................................................................10 2.1.4 The House Mouse ................................................................................................................................10 2.2 A HISTORY OF DAMAGE TO HUMAN INTERESTS...............................................................................11 2.2.1 Food and Agricultural Impacts............................................................................................................11 2.2.2 Human Health and Sanitation Effects..................................................................................................12 2.2.3 Damage to Property, Goods and Equipment.......................................................................................12 2.2.4 Ecological Effects ................................................................................................................................13 2.2.5 Known Risk to Seabirds .......................................................................................................................13 2.2.6 Ecosystems Unravel.............................................................................................................................14 3.0 RATS IN ALASKA: WHY BE CONCERNED? ......................................................... 15 3.1 WORLD-CLASS WILDLIFE RESOURCES AT RISK ...............................................................................15 3.2 ALASKA’S BIRDS ON THE FRONT LINES ...........................................................................................16 3.3 POTENTIAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE .....................................................................................18 3.4 ENDANGERED SPECIES AND OTHER CONCERNS...............................................................................19 3.5 ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, AND SAFETY CONCERNS .................................................................................20 3.5.1 Wildlife Harvest and Tourism Concerns..............................................................................................20 3.5.2 Threats to Public Health and Safety ....................................................................................................22 4.0 INVASIVE RODENTS IN ALASKA: CURRENT STATUS.................................... 25 4.1 EXTENT OF WILD RAT POPULATIONS...............................................................................................25 4.2 RODENTS AS PETS AND LABORATORY SUBJECTS.............................................................................27 4.3 INVASIVE RODENT ACCESS TO ALASKA...........................................................................................28 5.0 INVASIVE RODENT MANAGEMENT...................................................................... 33 5.1 APPROACHES: PREVENTION VERSUS ERADICATION AND CONTROL ................................................33 5.2 PAST RAT REMOVAL EFFORTS IN OTHER AREAS.............................................................................33 5.3 RAT PLANNING, PREVENTION AND CONTROL EFFORTS IN ALASKA ................................................35 5.3.1 Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge ..........................................................................................35 5.3.2 Rat Spill Prevention and Response......................................................................................................36 5.3.3 Community and Commercial Efforts ...................................................................................................38 i 5.3.4 Education and Outreach Efforts ..........................................................................................................39 5.3.5 Recent Legal and Regulatory Efforts...................................................................................................41 5.3.6 Alaska’s Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy....................................................................41 6.0 RESEARCH, RESTORATION AND MONITORING............................................... 43 6.1 CONDUCTING AND REPORTING ON RESEARCH.................................................................................43 6.2 NEED FOR PRE-INVASION BASELINE SURVEY DATA........................................................................43 6.3 ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION .............................................................................................................44 6.3.1 Natural Versus Assisted Restoration ...................................................................................................44 6.3.2 Recommendations Related to Restoration ...........................................................................................46 6.4 ECOSYSTEM MONITORING ................................................................................................................47 7.0 A PLAN FOR