Mortein

As they are highly adaptable and omnivorous (they are not selective in their food and eat almost anything), rodents are a very common problem. Rodents are nocturnal, they are active during the night; therefore if you see one during the day it is likely that there are many more hiding in your home.

Rodents not only spoil food and chew through many materials, including electrical wires which can then cause fires, but they are also known to spread a large number of human diseases, from mild short lived diseases to severe diseases that can cause death. They are associated with diseases like typhus, salmonellosis, leptospirosis or toxoplasmosis. Their urine droplets can cause allergies and rodents can also bring fleas, mites, ticks and lice into your home.

The house mouse as well as the black and the brown rats are the most common in Australia.

The Black Rat also called roof rat is very cosmopolitan; they live in urban environments especially in upper parts of dwellings. They are very agile, excellent climbers and good swimmers. Usually they nests indoors in roof and wall cavities. They are not usually aggressive and fear new things in their environment.

Black Rats are dark brown–black and are easily recognizable with their tail longer than their body length. They have large ears and eyes and a pointed nose. They are omnivorous however they prefer cereals vegetables and fruits. They can up to 3 years. When they reach maturity, every year females can have up to 6 litters of 10 young each; therefore up to 60 youngsters per year!

Black Rats can be a serious pest of food stores, orchards and plantations. They can transmit an array of diseases such as Salmonellosis, leptospirosis, plague, rickettsial diseases (scrub and murine typhus), toxoplasmosis, leishmaniasis,

The Brown Rat also called Norway Rat is found in urban and rural environments usually in lower parts of dwellings. They can be a serious pest on livestock farms They have smaller ears and eyes than the Black Rat, and their tail is shorter than their head and body length. Their weight can reach 800g!

They are very agile, poor climber but good swimmers. They usually live in colonies in burrows although in cold weather they will nest in roof and wall cavities. Although they strongly fear new things in their environment, Brown Rats are aggressive and strong. They are more omnivorous than Black Rats and will eat almost anything humans or their domestic animals may eat. They can also be a successful predator.

Brown Rats usually live up to a year and females can have 5-6 litters of 7-10 young each, similar to the Black Rat. In addition to the diseases the Black Rat can transmit, Brown Rats can also cause hemorrhagic fevers and angiostrongyliasis.

The House Mouse exists almost anywhere that food is available. There are many species of house mouse with different physiology and behaviour but are difficult to distinguish physically.

The House Mouse only weighs 10 to 25g and their tail is about the same size as their head and body length. House mice are very agile and very inquisitive as opposed to rats. They can nest in burrows, roofs, wall cavities, cupboards and can squeeze through spaces as small as their head.

The House Mouse is associated with causing hemorrhagic fevers, leptospirosis, salmonellosis, toxoplasmosis and in the Australian wheat belt they can be found in plague numbers.