Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1506906
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 SEPTEMBER 2023 8 INTERVIEW Raphael Vassallo rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt Give wildlife a chance... There's been a lot of talk re- cently about how Malta has be- come infested with rats: but is this really a reflection of rising rodent populations? Couldn't it be that Malta has always had a rat problem, in the past... but it's more visible today, be- cause of all the construction that's going on; as well as the ongoing garbage crisis? Well, it's a multitude of things, really. If you compare Malta's rat population this year, with that of the previous three years: then yes, you can definitely say there's been an 'explosion'. However, if you compare it to four or five years ago: it's basically almost the same. So while there has been an in- flux, recently: our current rat population is not the highest ever recorded. From my own records, Malta's highest recorded rat pop- ulation was around 10 years ago. Nonetheless, the increase from last year has still been very big. As for the reasons why: first of all, there's the weather. Weath- er patterns have a major impact of wildlife populations. I've been preaching about this for the past 10 years, in relation to Oriental hornets. This year, there has been a sharp decrease in hornet popu- lations: thanks largely to our ef- forts, as exterminators, in catch- ing queens from an early stage. But besides that, the decrease was also due to the intense heat- waves that we've had; and the fact that it wasn't a 'stable' summer. As a result, the Oriental Hornet numbers dropped drastically. Re- garding cockroaches, on the oth- er hand: what we have noticed, is that the 'roach season' seems to have started significantly later than usual, this year. But while it started out at a very slow pace... suddenly, there was a boom. In fact, we are now back to the usual numbers, for this time of year. Coming back to rats: besides the weather - which also affects their populations – we have seen the biggest increases, by far, in areas which are already overpopulated [by humans]. Places where gar- bage is not being picked up con- stantly; or where it's left out late at night, and not packed proper- ly... All this has resulted in moun- tains of garbage, accumulating in areas like Sliema, St. Julian's, etc: often left out overnight, which is the time for rodents, and other species, to forage. On top of that: construction certainly doesn't help, at all. Look at it this way: on a plot of land where, in the past, there would have been just one house – with only one, maybe two toilets - there are now apartment blocks with as many as 70 toilets, all pumping sewage into the same drainage system... On that note: it is often said – of places like New York City – that 'wherever you are, you will be within 10 metres of at least one rat'. Is that true of Malta, as well? It depends where you are, exact- ly: but in some areas... Let me put it this way: if you were to pull up all the tarmac from our streets, and expose what's underneath: for one thing, you will see that, in many areas, the sewage-sys- tem is simply overfowing, ever- where you look. But the amount of rodent-tunnels you will see? It's incredible. There are entire networks of tunnels, beneath our towns and villages. And this year, more than ever: because their numbers are exploding again. So I'm afraid that - if construc- tion is going to continue at the present rate, on these islands – the rodent problem will become impossible to handle. Having said that: since we've been working directly on this is- sue, I've seen a huge effort from the authorities: especially the lo- cal councils, and individual may- ors. They are really doing their utmost, compared to previous years, to solve the problem. So I have to give them credit, for that. It's not all doom-and-gloom... Nonetheless, rats have in- creased drastically, in overpopu- lated urban areas – and the situ- ation is already almost impossible to deal with, today. When talking about such crea- tures as 'vermin', however... we're only seeing things from our own perspective, as human beings. Don't these animals al- so have a part to play, in Mal- ta's natural ecosystem? And isn't it is also partly because of imbalances to that ecosystem (including, for instance that we have killed off most of their natural predators) that these pest-species are even on the increase, at all? Well... it's complex matter you're raising, there. First of all, bear in mind that the rats we have in Malta, that are considered 'pest species', are not indigenous. They were introduced. So they never were native, to begin with; and as such, they never had any natural predators, of their own. Now, if we take a place like Bus- kett, for example: yes, there are wild species that feed upon rats; such as snakes, and birds of prey. However, these are also being persecuted by the public: hunt- ing, pesticides; pollution; loss of habitat, to development or agri- culture... all these have contribut- ed to a decline in several of those species. Folklore, too, is part of the prob- lem: snakes, for instance, are of- ten killed because of religious, or superstitious beliefs... despite being protected, in Malta. So yes: up to a point, you could argue that the lack of natural predation, also plays its part. The problem, however, is that it certainly can- not account for the situation in places such as Sliema, or St Ju- lian's. Not because there aren't any predators in those areas, by the way. There are snakes in Sliema, for instance... There certainly used to be, when I lived there as a child. The grounds of what is today the Capua Hospital was once full of them... They exist in other urban areas, too. As a pest-control compa- ny, we get calls for people with all kinds of 'animal problems' – whether they actually involve pest-species, or not. You'd be surprised at the number of times we get called, because a snake got into someone's house: even in places you wouldn't expect. In fact, we are the only company that really tries to identify 'what's a friend and a foe', before doing any exterminating. In the case of snakes – and other species: in- cluding lizards, hedgehogs, and shrews - we actually go there to ARNOLD SCIBERRAS – managing director of 'The Exterminator' pest-control company – argues that it is important to distinguish between 'friend' and 'foe', before deciding you have a pest-problem