Deadly rats invade crops in Australia

After years of drought, farmers in eastern Australia have been facing for months an invasion of rats that eat their crops, in a new plight added to a series of crises that have rocked the country's agricultural sector in recent years.

Armed with a broom, Cole Tink, a farmer in the remote small town of Dabo in New South Wales, pushes mice into a large tank where they will drown.

This method is the only one available to him to curb this pest that plagues many farms in the huge oceanic country.

But until now, his efforts are still not able to solve this problem, as mice continue to devour his crops of wheat and hay and do not hesitate to target everything that is eaten.

And videos spread around the world showing swarms of thousands of mice invading agricultural crops and homes.

It is the latest blow to Australian farmers, after years of drought and months of devastating fires at the end of 2019 and the floods that followed.

"My dad is still alive, he's 93, and these last three years have been the worst of his life. I think it's the worst rat infestation ever," says Tink, a livestock farmer.

Tink fears the continuation of this pest during the southern winter, which begins in June.

"If we don't see a really cold, wet winter, I'm afraid of what might happen in the spring," explains the 65-year-old.

Large quantities of rodents have been reported since October and an exceptional harvest, after the worst drought ever, has allowed them to reproduce.

"If we don't see more severe winters, the mice will have enough to survive all year round, so it becomes chronic," Bateman says.

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