Western Australia is experiencing a severe mouse plague, with unprecedented numbers causing widespread damage to crops and a pervasive, offensive odor in affected towns. Farmers face significant financial and psychological burdens, while regulatory delays in approving stronger poisons have exacerbated the crisis.
An IRS employee resigned from her Georgia federal office due to a severe rodent infestation. Sydney Monger reported dead rodents, droppings, and ineffective traps, with colleagues sitting on desks to avoid contact. The IRS acknowledged the issues at the aging facility and is investigating.
Lord Howe Island, off Australia's east coast, has witnessed a 60% increase in invertebrates (beetles, weevils, etc.) since the 2019 eradication of 300,000 invasive rats and mice, which had driven many native species to extinction.
Lord Howe Island has observed a 60% increase in invertebrate populations, including native cockroaches, following the eradication of 300,000 invasive rodents in 2019, contributing to ecosystem recovery.
Argentine scientists captured around 150 rodents in Ushuaia for hantavirus analysis. While two local species were found, no long-tailed rats, carriers of the Andes strain linked to the Hondius ship outbreak, were identified. Final results are expected in three weeks.
Argentine investigators are trapping rodents near Ushuaia to find the source of a deadly hantavirus outbreak that infected passengers on the MV Hondius. The Malbrán Institute is conducting tests, which could take a month, amid questions about the virus's presence in the region.
Two Indian nationals aboard a cruise ship have tested positive for hantavirus, but health officials assure there's no immediate threat to India. The virus, primarily spread by rodents, does not transmit easily between humans. Global health authorities are monitoring the situation, with the public risk deemed very low.
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that it suspects some rare human-to-human transmission of the deadly hantavirus took place between very close contacts on board a luxury cruise ship hit by seven confirmed or suspected cases. Human-to-human transmission is not common, and the UN health agency reiterated that the risk to the wider public was low from a disease typically spread from contact with infected rodents. A Dutch couple and a German national have died, while a British national...
The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that it suspects some rare human-to-human transmission of the deadly hantavirus took place between very close contacts on board a luxury cruise ship hit by seven confirmed or suspected cases. Human-to-human transmission is not common, and the UN health agency reiterated that the risk to the wider public was low from a disease typically spread from contact with infected rodents. A Dutch couple and a German national have died, while a British national...
Cape Verde blocks MV Hondius from docking in order ‘to protect public health’ after deaths of three passengersWhat is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?Medics are scrambling to evacuate two people from a luxury cruise ship stranded off the coast of Cape Verde, after a suspected outbreak of a rare respiratory virus killed three people, left three others seriously ill and forced nearly 150 people from across the world to isolate onboard.The plight of the MV Hondius, which set off in March from southern Argentina carrying 149 people from 23 countries, emerged late on Sunday after the World Health Organization said it was investigating a suspected outbreak of hantavirus, a disease primarily found in rodents. Continue reading...
A hantavirus outbreak is under investigation on the cruise ship MV Hondius after passengers fell ill. Transmitted by rodents, the virus can cause severe respiratory illness. While rare globally, recent cases, including a celebrity's death, highlight the risks. Health officials are probing the ship's infection source and stressing rodent control for prevention.
Officials say they will not authorise docking ‘to protect public health’ after deaths of three passengers on vesselWhat is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?Officials in Cape Verde have said they will not allow a cruise ship believed to be harbouring an outbreak of a rare respiratory virus to dock in its ports, after the deaths of three passengers onboard.The statement on Monday came hours after global health officials said they were scrambling to investigate the suspected outbreak of hantavirus, a disease primarily found in rodents, on the cruise ship in the Atlantic. Continue reading...
A suspected hantavirus outbreak on the expedition cruise ship MV Hondius has resulted in three deaths and multiple serious illnesses, prompting an international health response involving South African and Dutch authorities.
Three people have died and one is in intensive care in South Africa following a hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was traveling from Ushuaia, Argentina to Cabo Verde. The WHO confirmed one laboratory-tested hantavirus case, with five additional suspected cases among the six affected individuals.
Three people have died and one is in intensive care in South Africa following a hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius traveling from Ushuaia, Argentina to Cabo Verde. The WHO confirmed one laboratory-confirmed case and five suspected cases among six affected individuals.
Three people have died and at least six others were infected in a hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean, the World Health Organization said. One case is laboratory-confirmed and five are suspected. One patient is in intensive care in South Africa. Investigations are ongoing, including sequencing of the virus.
Leicestershire county council, led by Reform UK, has voted to release wild beavers into the countryside to help reduce flooding, despite the party's opposition to rewilding. The Labour government recently legalised beaver releases in England, about 400 years after the animals were hunted to extinction. Reform councillor Adam Tilbury said beavers are 'great natural engineers' who could form part of the solution to flooding. The move comes amid internal party divisions over nature policy, with leader Nigel Farage having consulted controversial figure Ben Goldsmith on environmental proposals.
Researchers at the Salk Institute documented a rare peaceful queen transition in their naked mole rat colony, challenging the conventional understanding that these rodents typically replace queens through violent warfare. The colony, named 'amigos' (Spanish for friends), experienced a nonviolent succession in 2025 when Queen Teré's daughter Arwen became the new birthing queen while the former queen continued to protect the colony. This contrasts with typical naked mole rat behavior and even a simultaneous violent coup at the Smithsonian's National Zoo.
