Apodemus sylvaticus, a potential threat to seed crops

Ross G. Cooper, D.Phil.

The wood mouse (A. sylvaticus, Family: Muridae, Order: Rodentia), a common sighting in North-West Africa and Europe, is, like most rodents, often associated with post-harvest threats to seed crops (Swai et al., 2019). Potentially, road, train and ship transport are facilitating it’s migration down to southern Africa and into Zimbabwe. A juvenile (<5cm in length) was spotted and identified (Smithers, 1975) in an urban wooded nature reserve in UK. Predatory threats include those from feral cats, snakes, foxes, hawks and owls, and, furthermore, vulnerable rodents face injury or death from exercising humans, and also from uncollected dog faeces and rancid garbage, sometimes associated with leptospirosis, and, indeed, more significantly than that posed by monkeypox virus, rabies, fleas, etc. (Cooper, 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2012) . The mouse’s normal responses and behaviour, prompted it to hide in leaf detritus, and, as such, prostrated itself carefully under a twig and abscised leaf litter. After a while, it tentatively and quietly crawled away past the nearest tree and onward towards a fenced fallow grass meadow. Normally the fields in the surround area are sowed with wheat, barley or maize, although remnants of germinated crop plants and wild grasses, presumably provided enough seed for its nutrition sustenance. More ecological surveys and studies of the Biology of rodents are required in order to attenuate loss of seed crops prior to and after harvest.

Controversially, it has been suggested that rodenticide avoidance and clean ecologically-harvested rodents for human consumption, would be beneficial to the country (Chiwanga, 2019).

References

Chiwanga, S. 2019. Mice farming: an option that Zimbabwe must pursue to achieve food security. Available at: https://www.heraldonline.co.zw/mice-farming-an-option-that-zimbabwe-must-pursue-to-achieve-food-security/

Cooper, R.G. 2008. A synopsis of rodent species in the Caribbean Islands, Endemic and Invasive. Living World: J. Trinidad & Tobago Field Naturalists’ Club: 1-7.

Cooper, R.G. 2009. Benny the African Giant Rat. Morrisville: Lulu Press Inc.

Cooper, R.G. 2010. African Giant Rats – an essay. Morrisville: Lulu Press Inc.

Cooper, R.G. 2012. The African Giant/Pouched rat (Cricetomys gambianus) – it’s Physiology, ecology, care & taming. Morrisville: Lulu Press Inc.

Smithers, R.H.N. 1975. Guide to the Rats and Mice of Rhodesia. Salisbury: Trustees of the National Museums and Monuments of Rhodesia.

Swai, J., Mbega, E.R., Mushongi, A. and Ndakidemi, P.A. 2019. Post-harvest losses in maize store-time and marketing model perspectives in Sub-Saharan Africa. J. Stored Products Postharvest Res 10(1): 1-12.