A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia
The black rat (Rattus rattus) is among the world’s worst invasive species, having spread across the globe in close association with the spread of human settlement. It is the source of some of the worst diseases affecting humans and is thought to have had a devastating impact on native wildlife, espe...
Published in: | Wildlife Research |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Text |
Language: | English |
Published: |
CSIRO Publishing
2012
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 |
id |
ftbioone:10.1071/WR11086 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftbioone:10.1071/WR11086 2024-06-02T08:13:42+00:00 A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes world 2012-02-27 text/HTML https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 en eng CSIRO Publishing doi:10.1071/WR11086 All rights reserved. https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 Text 2012 ftbioone https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 2024-05-07T00:49:46Z The black rat (Rattus rattus) is among the world’s worst invasive species, having spread across the globe in close association with the spread of human settlement. It is the source of some of the worst diseases affecting humans and is thought to have had a devastating impact on native wildlife, especially in island ecosystems. Black rat is likely to have arrived in Australia with the first European settlers, making it among the first of many alien species to invade the continent, and it is now widespread. Yet, its impacts on local wildlife have largely been overlooked. Here, we review the potential for black rat impacts in Australia in terms of its role as a source of disease and threats to wildlife and humans. We first summarise the global evidence for black rat impacts as background to the potential threats it poses and then focus specifically on emerging evidence available for Australian systems. We found a significant gap in our understanding of the ecology of black rats and the ecological role that it plays in Australia. This is despite its role as a source of a diverse range of diseases affecting humans and wildlife and its actions as a predator and competitor of native wildlife in Australia and elsewhere. Text Rattus rattus BioOne Online Journals Wildlife Research 39 1 78 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
BioOne Online Journals |
op_collection_id |
ftbioone |
language |
English |
description |
The black rat (Rattus rattus) is among the world’s worst invasive species, having spread across the globe in close association with the spread of human settlement. It is the source of some of the worst diseases affecting humans and is thought to have had a devastating impact on native wildlife, especially in island ecosystems. Black rat is likely to have arrived in Australia with the first European settlers, making it among the first of many alien species to invade the continent, and it is now widespread. Yet, its impacts on local wildlife have largely been overlooked. Here, we review the potential for black rat impacts in Australia in terms of its role as a source of disease and threats to wildlife and humans. We first summarise the global evidence for black rat impacts as background to the potential threats it poses and then focus specifically on emerging evidence available for Australian systems. We found a significant gap in our understanding of the ecology of black rats and the ecological role that it plays in Australia. This is despite its role as a source of a diverse range of diseases affecting humans and wildlife and its actions as a predator and competitor of native wildlife in Australia and elsewhere. |
author2 |
Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes |
format |
Text |
author |
Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes |
spellingShingle |
Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
author_facet |
Peter B. Banks Nelika K. Hughes |
author_sort |
Peter B. Banks |
title |
A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
title_short |
A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
title_full |
A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
title_fullStr |
A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
title_full_unstemmed |
A review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (Rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in Australia |
title_sort |
review of the evidence for potential impacts of black rats (rattus rattus) on wildlife and humans in australia |
publisher |
CSIRO Publishing |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 |
op_coverage |
world |
genre |
Rattus rattus |
genre_facet |
Rattus rattus |
op_source |
https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 |
op_relation |
doi:10.1071/WR11086 |
op_rights |
All rights reserved. |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1071/WR11086 |
container_title |
Wildlife Research |
container_volume |
39 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
78 |
_version_ |
1800737290991960064 |