Rat Populations Rise as Climate Change Warms Larger Cities

It’s time to add rat infestations to the long list of issues that may be made worse by climate change.

By Sam Walters
Feb 6, 2025 9:30 PMFeb 6, 2025 9:36 PM
A rat crawling through a tight space.
As cities warm with climate change, they may become better habitats for rats. (Credit: txking/Shutterstock)

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Rat infestations are increasing all around the world, and scientists suggest that climate change may be to blame. Publishing their results in a recent Science Advances article, a team of researchers analyzed rat populations in 16 cities from around the world, including New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C.

Their analysis — one of the first to assess rat populations at such scale — revealed that the cities that saw bigger bumps in temperatures were also the cities that saw bigger bumps in rats.

“Cities experiencing greater temperature increases over time saw larger increases in rats,” the study stated. “Warming temperatures and more people living in cities may be expanding the seasonal activity periods and food availability.”

Tracking Rats

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