The Eastern Bays Songbird Project has been carrying out pest monitoring focusing on hedgehogs, mice, rats, possums and mustelids since 2021. This pest monitoring program runs twice a year at fixed locations, over 11 monitoring lines, using tracking tunnels, chew cards and wax tags.
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Per cent of tracking stations visited over time by rats, mice, hedgehogs and possums, from 11 pest monitoring lines.
Mean tracking index of all monitoring lines showing each target species over time.
Over the past six years of pest monitoring, we have observed several important trends. Rat numbers have fallen significantly compared with our 2021 baseline and have remained at low levels following major declines in Spring 2023 and Autumn 2024. The data also shows a consistent seasonal pattern, with rat activity generally higher in autumn than in spring.
Possums remain at low abundance across the project area, but they are still present. We continue to remove around 200 possums each year from the project zone, helping to maintain this low population level.
We recorded a notable increase in mouse activity during Autumn 2026, which aligned with higher-than-normal catch numbers over the same period. Mouse activity is consistently lower throughout spring.
Hedgehog activity follows a different seasonal pattern, with a marked increase in spring, while activity and abundance are typically very low during autumn.
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