âMice holes everywhereâ: The plague threatening our farmersâ summer crop
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While bluebottles have appeared on Sydneyâs shores this summer, a different kind of pest has been running amok in the Central West.
Thanks to bountiful crop-growing conditions over the past 12 months, NSWâs mouse population has grown to plague proportions not seen since the infestation of 2011, which cost farmers more than $200 million.
Although consistent rainfall is usually a cause for celebration in NSW, CSIRO researcher Steve Henry said this yearâs moist season had created perfect mouse-breeding conditions. â³â£The sizeable crop and moisture in the air allows them to breed and feed; this goes on largely undetected until itâs too late,â³â£ he said.