Authorities said the surge in the rat population was partly driven by a prolonged dry season, which has allowed dense scrub to grow and provide shelter for the pests.
An extreme drought coupled with a surge in rat population is threatening farmers across Central Java with widespread crop losses, as the pests destroy staple crops and increasingly attack vegetables and fruit grown in fields and household gardens.
Rat infestations are damaging rice, corn, chillies, shallots, eggplant, tomatoes and fruit trees, according to local authorities.
In Semarang, rat infestations have affected about 1,050 hectares of rice fields, putting rice yields at risk.
Moh Edy Sukarno, head of the Semarang Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Agency, said authorities have taken several measures to contain the infestation, including clearing weeds around rice-field embankments, organizing mass rat hunts and encouraging farmers to plant simultaneously. The efforts, however, have so far failed to curb the attacks significantly.
"We have also built about 100 owl houses in affected rice fields to encourage owls, natural predators of rats, to return. But the programme has not been effective because wild owl populations have declined sharply," Edy said on Sunday, as quoted by Kompas.com
© Copyright 2025 The SSResource Media.
All rights reserved.