EVENTS

Invasive Rodent Response on Islands to Increased Hurricane Frequency

Should we be worried, and what can we do?

American Sāmoa | Wednesday, February 21 from 1:00-2:15 p.m.Hawaiʻi | Wednesday, February 21 from 2:00-3:15 p.m.Palau | Thursday, February 22 from 9:00-10:15 a.m.CNMI & Guam | Thursday, February 22 from 10:00-11:15 a.m.FSM | Thursday, February 22 from 10:00-11:15 a.m. (Weno) / 11:00 am-12:15 p.m. (Palikir)RMI | Thursday, February 22 from 12:00-1:15 p.m.

A Pacific RISCC Webinar via Zoom

Webinar Details:

This is a flyer showing the title, date, time, and description of the webinar, biography details for the speaker, and registration links.

Invasive Rodent Responses on Islands to Increased Hurricane Frequency

In this talk, Dr. Aaron Shiels will discuss hurricane-impacts on rodents in the Caribbean Islands, and invasive rodent work in both the Caribbean and Pacific Islands.

Webinar Abstract:

How do hurricanes influence invasive rodent populations and behaviors? And are changes in rodent invasions (that are expected with predicted increased hurricane frequency) resulting from global climate change? In this talk Dr. Shiels will discuss how hurricanes affect invasive small mammals through a study that took place on 3 U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. On Green Cay, an offshore island 450 meters from the main St. Croix Island, two category 3-5 hurricanes passed over in 2017 and responses by rodents were measured before and after. As well, rodent response was measured before and after 2 category 3-5 hurricanes that passed over Luquillo, Puerto Rico in 2017. In addition to covering how the hurricanes affected presence/absence and relative abundance of invasive rodents in these two locations, Dr. Shiels will also discuss invasive rodent impacts and control strategies in the Hawaiian Islands, where hurricane severity is expected to increase with climate change.


Speaker details:

Dr. Aaron Shiels is a Research Biologist at the USDA National Wildlife Research Center in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he leads the Rodents Project in developing and testing methods to mitigate rodent damage to agriculture, natural resources, and human health and safety while reducing risks to non-target species and the environment.

Revelant Publications:

Shiels, A. B., Lombard, C. D., Shiels, L., & Hillis-Starr, Z. (2020). Invasive rat establishment and changes in small mammal populations on Caribbean Islands following two hurricanes. Global Ecology and Conservation, Volume 22, June 2020, e00986. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e00986.

For a Pacific RISCC Research Summary of Shiels et al. 2020, click here: Pacific RISCC December Research Summary Shiels et al. 2020.

Shiels, A. B., Ramírez de Arellano, G. E., & Shiels, L. (2022). Invasive rodent responses to experimental and natural hurricanes with implications for global climate change. Ecosphere. Volume 13, Issue 12, December 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4307.