Journal de La Réserve Naturelle Nationale de St.Martin #41

20 CS21 Monitoring the reproductive success of brown noddies The goal of the second France Relance project is to fight against the proliferation of rats on the small is- land of Tintamarre. The rat traps being used have the advantage of being automated and killing the rodents immediately, in contrast to the kind of traps used in the past. Each baited trap is designed for one rat to enter and be immediately bludgeoned by a small hammer that is released by compressed gas in a cartridge. The rat then falls on the outside of the cage, which is once again back in operation by rearming itself up to 24 times per cartridge. 150 traps were set in the month of June 2022 on a third of the surface of the island, with the help of Axelle Verdière, an intern at the Réserve from February through July 2022. The results are ver- ified every two weeks, in order to eventually replace the gas cartridges, rebait the traps, and count the num- ber of times the hammer was triggered, as indicated on an integrated counter. 400 to 450 times over a 14 days period: a big number even if it has to be reduced some- what, as other animals—hermit crabs, lizards—might trigger the trap. The 150 traps will later be moved to the other two thirds of Tintamarre, and several will be placed in a cordon sanitaire behind the beach at Baie Blanche, for a year. Regulation Of Small Rodents on Tintamarre The rat, which feeds on turtle eggs, small reptiles, and by nibbling on grains and young plant sprouts, has a very negative impact on our biodiversity. At the same time, the Réserve was getting regular complaints from campers, bothered by starving rats, who for example managed to put a hole in the thick plastic cover of a hard plastic cooler. The good news: the most recent campers questioned during the month of August, did not see any rodents. Réserve Naturelle SAINT MARTIN Installation d’un piège à rats Installation of a rat trap