Norwegian sewer rats flooded out of tunnels and onto Sydney streets

As Sydney is swamped by wet weather, a mass rat migration is underway. A veteran rat catcher has one tip to avoid being attacked.

A mass rat migration is quietly taking place across the suburbs of Sydney and the final destination is the roof in your family’s home, veteran rat catchers have warned.

Sneaky Norwegian sewer rats are escaping their beloved complex tunnel systems, which have been flooded with water, and are seeking refuge in warm roof cavities of suburban houses.

Inner West Pest Control owner Paul Errington said he had been inundated with calls this winter as rats seek to escape the cold and wet weather.

“What has been happening is the Norwegian rats, they love to tunnel and build underground networks and they have been flooded with the rain and migrate to the roof,” he said.

He said some rats were brazenly living in plain sight at certain properties but said also loved to live in the roof of the family house out of sight thanks to the insulation.

Rats in Haymarket. Picture: Bill Hearne

The rats are all across Sydney but some parts of Sydney are worse than others.

“There are certain areas in the inner west where I heavily bait numerous houses in the same street,” he said.

Rats are seeking higher ground. Picture: Bill Hearne

Primal Pest Control owner Adam Chakas has also had numerous calls for help from householders facing a rodent invasion but said the problem was not confined to the city.

“Inner city Sydney does have a large Norwegian rat problem — they’re all your sewer rats basically,” he said.

But southwest Sydney suburbs such as Camden, Oran Park, Narellan have a problem with mice at the moment.

Clean and Green Pest Control’s rat catcher of 10 years David Wright said the Norwegian sewer rats in the suburbs could be relatively tame but said it was a different story in the city, where higher numbers meant they had become more territorial and aggressive.

Rats have been seen scurrying around gardens at Goodlet St, Surry Hills, chewing open garbage bags and escaping with food scraps. Picture: Bill Hearne

He said he had been attacked by rats running toward him at Paddy’s Market and Sydney Airport.

“The Norwegian rats are more aggressive — I have had them charge at me before,” he said.

“I have been in Darling Harbour and had them jump on my head from above me from a fence.”

Rats are coming out of their burrows to get out of all this rain. Picture: Bill Hearne

He urged the authorities to look to cities such as New York where sophisticated practices such as the use of dry ice have been employed to kill all the rats in a burrow.

In Sydney he said the usual practice of baiting rats was no longer working because the rats were getting smarter and not eating the bait.

“They can actually even identify certain rodent baits just by looking at them — someone in their rat family will have eaten that particular bait,” he said.

In the meantime, Mr Wright urged people to be vigilant in Darling Harbour where he had been attacked.

“They don’t have much fear of humans because they’ve seen them all the time and they’re just not too intimidated by them,” he said.

“When you walk through that main area late at night be careful around make sure you’re not walking too close to bushes.”

A City of Sydney spokeswoman said there had been no significant change in rat numbers or species in the city boundaries over the past 12 months.

Originally published as Norwegian sewer rats flooded out of tunnels and onto Sydney streets