Seven years ago, New Zealand passed a law declaring that it aimed to eradicate rats by the year 2050, with the idea of saving its native birds. With 27 years to go until the deadline, the BBC checks in on how things are going, and it sounds a little exhausting, frankly. Regional groups have sprung up around the country, making use of government funds to arm volunteers with poison, traps, and outdoor cams. Others have set up fenced sanctuary zones in the wild (possums also are targeted for elimination) to put a particular focus on those areas. While some areas have seen success—the peninsula of Miramar near Wellington, for example, has seen its population of native birds bounce back as rats have been hunted down—but the phrase "constant vigilance" is the theme. The rats can rebound in a hurry.
The story explains the big-picture issue in the broadest of strokes—native birds nested on the ground for eons before humans arrived, accompanied by rats, and thus the birds are vulnerable to the relatively new predators. When easy-to-use cams emerged in the aughts and displayed the carnage wrought by rats on eggs, the rodents became national villains. (Just ask these schoolchildren.) The piece also explores the split among conservationists about the ongoing eradication plan, with some on board and others leery of both the staggering logistics and the ethics of wiping out a sentient creature. "We marshalled enormous resources and people's passion and we implemented great cruelty," says one critical researcher, Wayne Linklater. "How could we be so blithe with suffering?" Read the full story. (Or check out other longforms.)
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