CSIRO’s MouseAlert app shows areas affected by horrific mouse plague

A weapon in the fight against a horrific mouse plague has been sitting right under our noses – and now people are encouraged to use it.

CSIRO is encouraging farmers and residents in rural towns to use an app it created several years ago to track mice sightings and infestations as authorities scramble to win the fight against the costly plague on Australia’s east coast.

An online platform called Mouse Alert displays hundreds of red circles indicating rodent infestations in a 100km stretch across Queensland, NSW and Victoria.

The app was created in 2014, but authorities had no idea how much it would be needed seven years later as swarms of mice terrorise rural towns in central NSW.

Farmers are having their crops destroyed and homes invaded by waves of mice that have bred exponentially after a summer of heavy rain produced high crop yields and cooler weather – ripe conditions for the pests.

The worst-hit areas have been the Northern Tablelands, Central West and New England regions of NSW, but there has been speculation the plague could reach even Sydney in coming months.

The map shows particular concentrations of the mice around Narrabri, Coonabarabran and Moree.

The FeralScan Pest Mapping App can help people record information about mice on properties or in their local area. The app can be downloaded onto mobile devices free, from the Apple App store or Google Play store.

CSIRO's Mouse Alert app stretches for more than 1000km from southeast Queensland to the NSW-Victorian border. Picture: Supplied

Users can lodge sightings on the Mouse Alert app. Picture: Supplied

While other pests are in the app, users wanting to lodge mice sightings first click on the mouse icon.

Then they hit the “enter mouse activity” button for finer details, such as the date, time, location and number/concentration of mice.

Users are then encouraged to upload a photo and share the information publicly, although this is not mandatory.

Other pests are included on the app. Picture: Supplied

Step 2 on the enter mouse activity function. Picture: Supplied

Details of the sightings are required. Picture: Supplied

There is an option to share a photo. Picture: Supplied

Importantly, for remote locations that may have occasionally weaker internet connections, the app can be used in areas without an internet connection or network coverage.

Information recorded with the app in areas without an internet connection will be stored within the Saved Records folder in the app until a user is back within a mobile or wi-fi network. Users would need to open the folder to submit records.

The ongoing rodent infestation across eastern Australia is on track to cause up to $100m worth of damage and has already worsened a mental health crisis in the regions.

Some farmers have lost as much as $300,000 as mice chew through crops.