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Mouse populations in Western Australia have surged to plague levels, with reports of up to 4,000 burrows per hectare. Grain farmers are particularly concerned, especially in areas around Geraldton and the southern WA wheatbelt.
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Grain growers are on high alert as mouse numbers in Western Australia reach plague proportions and numbers surge in South Australia.
Steve Henry, who researches mice and their impact on the grain industry at CSIRO, says more than 800 mice per hectare is considered a plague.
“In Western Australia we’re now using the P word,” he said. “We’re getting reports out of Western Australia of 3,000 or 4,000 burrows per hectare.”
“That’s real cause for concern. It’s a plague under any circumstances.”
Areas around Geraldton – about 400km north of Perth – were most affected, with similar reports coming in from southern parts of the WA wheatbelt.
On the Adelaide plains, mouse numbers were already “extremely high” and “very concerning for farmers”, Henry said.
The 2020-21 plague that occurred in eastern Australia caused an estimated $1bn damage. It exposed people and their pets to pesticides and disease, increased stress, and affected the health of livestock (due to contamination of feed and water with mouse urine and carcasses).
The current situation could rapidly escalate. Female mice could start breeding from six weeks old, producing up to 10 babies every 19-21 days.
The latest CSIRO mouse forecast recommended farmers monitor mouse activity, consider applying baits at seeding in areas of high activity, and reduce the availability of other food sources.
Mouse activity through Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland remained low, the report said.
Mouse plagues occurred in Australia every four to five years, and they can cause devastating economic, social and environmental damage, one study found.
Historically, significant outbreaks often occurred when several years of lower than average rainfall was followed by rain, Henry said.
“That puts a lot of food in the system and mice seem to breed out of control on the tail of those dry years. That’s certainly what happened in New South Wales in 2021, and here in South Australia.”
The psychological impacts of a mouse plague were “really very profound”, Henry said.
“Mice aren’t like other problems that farmers have. Because, if you’ve got a drought, you can go inside, and close the door and switch on the air conditioner and get a bit of respite from it. But, if you’ve got a mouse plague, you go inside and the mice are in the house and you literally can’t get away from them.”
The agriculture minister, Julie Collins, told ABC radio that farmers were already dealing with the effects of the Iran war on fuel and fertiliser, and that mice would be an additional challenge.
Mouse populations in Western Australia have reached plague levels, with reports of 3,000 to 4,000 burrows per hectare.
The areas around Geraldton and the southern parts of the WA wheatbelt are the most affected by the mouse plague.
The mouse plague poses a significant threat to grain farmers by damaging crops and increasing production costs.

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“We know that there’s a lot on their plate, and we want to keep them farming.”
Andrew Weidemann from Grain Producers Australia said farmers needed access to higher dose zinc phosphide (ZP) mouse baits.
“Growers currently have access to ZP25, but feedback from growers and evidence from research is that this strength bait does not convert to adequate control in the paddock.”
Mark Fowler, president of the WA Farmers grains section, said: “We have an urgent problem that exists right now.” The issue was timing, he said, given seeding was already under way, making it the most effective time to bait.