Killgerm Chemicals has launched a new species-specific bait station for Norway rat Rattus norvegicus control.
The AF Amicus is a bait station which precludes entry by bank voles and wood mice, while still allowing access for Norway rats.
The AF Amicus has been designed to prevent non-target species from accessing the rodenticides and traps inside. The new tamper-resistant and species-specific bait station has two ‘tube’ entrances that Norway rats can climb up. Placement at the correct height is critical to allow this and to prohibit entry by wood mice and bank voles.
Iain Urquhart of Advanced Pest Management, who created the AF Amicus, said: “I knew the design of conventional bait stations allowed for non-target animals to gain access to rodenticide baits – something had to be done.
“So, it all started in June 2012 when the expression “rat up a drainpipe” kept on being repeated in my head. It gave me an idea. I doodled with a conventional bait station, bringing it up off the ground, and the idea struck me of placing a pipe up into the box.”
Mr Urquhart added: “My brother-in-law and I came up with a design that allowed for rats, of eight weeks of age and above (adults), to gain access to the box but at the same time precluded mice from entry. The fact that no snails managed to gain access to the bait stations, once tested in the field, I have to admit was just an added bonus.”