MICE damage to Wimmera crops during sowing was significantly down from last year.
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CSIRO research officer Steve Henry said mice numbers were down due to a number of reasons.
“The combination of dry weather leading into sowing and the heavy baiting done by farmers definitely reduced the impact,” he said.
“Farmers were far more prepared this year and baited early and often. The availability of bait was also much better than last year.
“Many monitored regularly before sowing; some even applied bait straight off the back of the seeder.”
He said certain areas were still being hit with heavy mice numbers.
“The general impression from farmers is that numbers seem to be down across the board,” he said.
“But it’s patchy at the moment and in some places we’re still seeing high numbers.
“ Mice are persistent in areas where feed has been left from last year.
“The cold and wet weather can affect them, but it would have to be a significant amount of rain and be significantly colder to draw them out of the burrows.”
He said it was important that farmers continued to monitor the situation on their properties, even if mice weren’t visibly present.
“My advice to Wimmera farmers would be to keep an eye out for mice activity throughout winter and into spring,” he said.
“If higher than normal numbers start breeding during those last winter months, the we could have trouble. It’s also important to get out and have a walk around the crop to have a good look.
“Farmers should also keep an eye on the Feral Scan website for regular updates. We’ll be doing monitoring during the next few weeks to release our Mice Update for winter.”
Related: Mice warning for Wimmera farmers
Kalkee farmer Tom Blair said the mice situation at his farm was severe about a month ago, but numbers had dropped due to a change in the weather.
“The situation has eased from what it was before,” he said.
“I’ve baited all the paddocks where they were present, and it seems like the colder and wetter weather has drawn them out.
“I’ve finished baiting, so I just need to monitor the situation now and go by how much activity there is.”
