Is this a roof rat? How do I get rid of it/them?
I noticed small droppings around our master bedroom deck and decided to setup a cam to try to see what it is. Looks like a roof rat but I'm not 100% sure. Can anyone identify? He hasn't been brave enough to come out fully but we'll see. A couple days ago I set out a mixture of cocoa, baking soda, sugar, flour and bits of peanut butter. I noticed something was nosing around in there because there were slight tracks but the droppings in the Pringles can bottom were a dead giveaway.
Any suggestions on how to get rid of this guy and any of his buddies?
Comments (8)
kimmq
7 years ago
lazy_gardens
7 years agoRelated Discussions
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Comments (2)I watered him only when the top inch felt dry and gave him lots of indirect sunlight. However, in the past couple of days, I've noticed brown spots/speckles on the lower leaves and the stems. I have also been reading similar posts from other members and Al's explanations, so I'm assuming the problem is mainly due to overwatering, root rot and/or insects. I also am seeing the fiddle's roots on top of the soil so the best bet seems to be repotting. Having come to this conclusion, I am planning to repot the guy by following Al's famous gritty mix recipe. The brown specks on the leaves are likely oedema, which occurs when the plant's internal water pressure becomes high enough to break through cell walls. The cell's contents then burst and leak into intercellular spaces in the surrounding tissue, which causes a saturated spot that eventually turns corky. The elongated spots on stem structures are openings in the stem's young periderm (bark) called lenticels. Their job is to provide openings through which internal gasses can escape and oxygen from surrounding air can enter the plant's tissue, which requires this gas exchange to remain viable. There is one question, however, that I have not been able to find an answer to anywhere in the forums (or perhaps I'm not researching hard enough). When repotting, am I supposed to remove/cut off the affected leaves? No. A plant's only source of food/energy is the sugar it makes during photosynthesis (glucose). Since every leaf is a food factory, removing them leaves the plant very vulnerable - especially so if it has been growing under stress or strain, leaving it w/o enough energy reserves to push a new flush of foliage. None of my leaves have crispy brown tips, mostly brown speckles on the back of the leaves as well as all over the stems (petiole?). I have seen some people cut away parts of the affected leaves, but that doesn't seem like the best option for me as the speckles are not necessarily concentrated in specific areas. The lower leaves are also starting to droop. If I am not supposed to cut the affected leaves, do they eventually go back to "normal" and lose the spots after repotting and following the correct procedures? Animals are regenerative organisms and can "heal" by regenerating new tissues in the same spacial position as damaged tissued. Plants are not capable of doing that, so damage cannot heal. A blemished leaf will always have the blemishes until the leaf is no more. I guess what I ultimately want to know is, "how do I get rid of the spots?" Some trees are prolific back-budders, IOW, they form new branches from dormant buds above old (leaf) bundle scars and from adventitious buds that arise from the plant's meristematic tissues. Meristematic tissues have cells (STEM cells, thus meriSTEMatic) that are capable of differentiating into any of the plant's organs. You can get rid of spots by getting rid of leaves - by defoliating the entire tree in the summer and when the plant is in a very high state of vitality (has lots of stored energy); or, you can cut the plant back hard and train a new branch to a vertical orientation as the new leader. All the new leaves on the new branches that occur will be pristine, as long as you're able to provide cultural conditions that favor the tree. Your job, as grower, is to identify and eliminate those conditions that are limiting or have the potential to inhibit the plant's ability to realize its genetic potential. That's how I look at growing, and it's served me very well. You can start by making sure you're maintaining a healthy ratio of air:water in the root zone and are fertilizing regularly and appropriately. That air:water thing is by far the most prevalent stumbling block, usually related to a less than ideal soil choice, for most growers ..... and not just the new ones. And YES, you can still repot w/o having to worry about timing. I'd say you're good up until the middle of Aug, or maybe even the first of SEP if it was really important that you repot this year. Still, sooner is better. Al...See Morejplee3
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agolazy_gardens
7 years agoIf it's SoCal, it's probably a 'roof rat'.
If you can, move the shed far enough from the wall that they don't feel so secure.
And if you can't, move the shed and make it less attractive to them by blocking off the underside with hardware cloth, then put it back. Treat it like a chicken coop being protected from predators.
We had a brief problem with roof rats in Phoenix, until this gray fox showed up. End of rats. End of pigeons nesting in roof niches and under the AC unit. It caught and ate them all. Cute thing, size of a large housecat if you ignore the tail.
jplee3
6 years agojplee3
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoDoes anyone know what this is? Is it a baby brown rat? Or a field mouse? It looks pretty fresh-dead - walked into my yard near the problem area and found it laying there. A couple weeks ago I generously sprayed the deck area down with Permethrin and and IGR to control the flea issue - it seems to have worked. Not sure about the rodent issue though...
jplee3
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agoSo I ended up getting one with the Tomcat trap (the Vector metal trap didn't work as the rodent stole right off it) but once it went to the Tomcat it was game over. The trap was flipped over and the rat (or large field mouse) was trying to get back from where it came in (a small burrow/hole under the wall):
I used PB and parmesan rinds as bait - they seem to love that combo. I placed the traps and bait out for several weeks refilling a couple times before confirming the rinds were getting taken away. Then over the wknd I set the traps and was 'rewarded' with a capture... of course, in the video it still shows the pest being alive so I quickly dispatched it out of its misery right after taking the video with a swift blow to the head/neck via a 1x6 piece scrap wood laying around. This one was certainly bigger than the mouse in the picture from the previous post. Though I'm not sure if this is still just a large mouse or if it's actually a rat. It seems like it's a rat though, based on the size of it
lazy_gardens