This section provides links to guidance documents that have been produced by a range of organisations. While this information should be a useful resource, the Non-native Species Secretariat cannot endorse any guidance. If you would like to recommend management information to include here please contact us.
On this page:
UK Rodent Eradication Best Practice Toolkit
The UK Rodent Eradication Best Practice Toolkit is intended as an advisory resource, providing a systematic approach for planning and implementing rodent eradications and biosecurity in the UK. It provides technical advice on specific methods to be used in the UK, as well as an eradication project management framework which is applicable to projects everywhere.
This Best Practice Toolkit has been compiled, and contributed to, by several UK governmental and non-governmental organisations involved in island restoration, these being:
- Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
- Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)
- Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
- GB Non-Native Species Secretariat (GB NNSS)
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)
- National Trust
- National Trust for Scotland
- Natural England
- Natural Resources Wales (NRW)
- Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH)
- Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT)
- Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust.
The Toolkit has also received input from Wildlife Management International Ltd (WMIL), and draws heavily from the documentation produced by WMIL for various rat eradication projects undertaken in the UK.
The use of the UK Rodent Eradication Best Practice Toolkit aims to give UK organisations and practitioners the ability to embark on invasive rodent management projects with greater confidence of achieving the desired island restoration goals.
For more information or to provide feedback on this resource, please contact Sophie Thomas Sophie.Thomas@rspb.org.uk.
Acknowledgements
Contents
The UK Rodent Eradication Best Practice Toolkit consists of (1) guidance documents for all stages of the project process plus(2) templates for key project development documents. The toolkit provides guidance on eradication and biosecurity for invasive non-native rodents, but not actions to further promote wider island restoration or ecosystem recovery. It currently does not provide advice on eradication/ biosecurity for other invasive non-native vertebrates aside from invasive rodent species.
The toolkit has been developed specifically for the UK context; however this can be adapted for other projects across Europe and outside Europe.
Download the toolkit (ZIP file)
The toolkit contains the following elements:
1. Guidance documents
The guidance documents providing technical advice for each stage of the project process:
- COVER PAGE / SUMMARY OF THE TOOLKIT
- MANUAL - UK BEST PRACTICE FOR RODENT ERADICATIONS
- ANNEX 1 ERADICATION TECHNIQUES IN THE UK
- ANNEX 2 RAT TRAPPING AND DNA SAMPLING
- ANNEX 3 RODENT SURVEILLANCE AND IDENTIFICATION
- ANNEX 4 BIOSECURITY PLANNING AND INCURSION RESPONSE
- ANNEX 5 RODENTICIDES
- ANNEX 6 LOGISTICS AND EQUIPMENT
2. Project development templates
These templates for eight important documents provide a starting point and cover all the vital information required at that stage of the project development. Additional important documents are listed, but currently do not have templates available:
- FEASIBILITY STUDY and worked example
- PROJECT PLAN
- OPERATIONAL PLAN and worked example
- BIOSECURITY PLAN and worked example
- MONITORING AND EVALUATION PLAN
- ERADICATION READINESS CHECK
- OPERATIONAL REVIEW
- BIOSECURITY CHECKLIST
- Communications Strategy
- Fundraising Strategy
- Risk Register
- Health & Safety Plan
- Technical Report
References and additional resources
- Broome, K.G., Brown, D, Cox, A., Cromarty, P., McClelland, P., Golding, C., Griffiths, R. & Bell, P. 2011: Current Agreed Best Practice for Rat Eradication ⎯ poison bait in bait stations (Version 1.3). New Zealand Department of Conservation internal document DOCDM-839096. Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand.
- Convention on Biological Diversity: Island Biodiversity. https://www.cbd.int/island/default.shtm
- DIISE, 2015: The Database of Island Invasive Species Eradications, developed by Island Conservation, Coastal Conservation Action Laboratory UCSC, IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group, University of Auckland and Landcare Research New Zealand. http://diise.islandconservation.org.
- Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. 2005. Ecosystems and human well-being: synthesis (PDF). Washington, DC: Island Press. ISBN 1-59726-040-1.
- Pacific Invasives Initiative http://www.pacificinvasivesinitiative.org
- Stanbury, A., Thomas, S., Aegerter, J., Brown, A., Bullock, D., Eaton, M., Lock, L., Luxmoore, R., Roy, S., Whitaker, S. and Oppel, S., 2017. Prioritising islands in the United Kingdom and crown dependencies for the eradication of invasive alien vertebrates and rodent biosecurity. European Journal of Wildlife Research, 63(1), p.31.
- Wildlife Management International http://www.wmil.co.nz/
Mustela vison (American Mink)
- Good practice guidance for American mink (PDF) - RAPID LIFE (2018)
- Management: American mink (Mustela vison) (PDF) - IUCN/ISSG (downloaded from website March 2014)
- Invasive Species Compendium: Neovision vision (American mink) (external link) - CABI website
- Rural Development Service Technical Advice Note 02: Mink (PDF). Natural England
- Reynolds, J.C., Richardson, S.M., Rodgers, B.J.E. & Rodgers, O.R.K. (2013) Effective control of non-native American mink by strategic trapping in a river catchment in mainland Britain (external link). The Journal of Wildlife Management, 77(3): 545-554
- Porteus, T.A., Short, M.J., Richardson, S.M., & Reynolds, J.C. (2012). Empirical development of strategy for the control of invasive American mink by trapping (external link). European Journal of Wildlife Research, 58(2): 403-413
- Reynolds, J.C., Short, M.J., & Leigh, R.J. (2004). Development of population control strategies for mink Mustela vison, using floating rafts as monitors and trap sites (external link). Biological Conservation, 120(4): 533-543
- The GWCT Mink Raft (PDF) - Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (downloaded from website March 2014)
- Moore, N.P., Roy, S.S. & Helyar, A. (2003) Mink (Mustela vison) eradication to protect ground-nesting birds in the Western Isles, Scotland, United Kingdom (PDF). New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 30: 443–452
- Bonesi, L. & Palazon, S. (2007) The American mink in Europe: Status, impacts, and control (external link). Biological Conservation, 134(4): 470-483