Invasive rodent dynamics in a highly connected African harbour

Abstract Research Highlight : Badou et al. (2023). Maritime international trade and bioinvasions: A three‐year long survey of small mammals in Autonomous Port of Cotonou, Benin. Journal of Applied Ecology , https://doi.org/10.1111/1365‐2664.14557 . Highly connected points are probably the entry point for many of the introduced species around the world. This is the case of the Port of Cotonou in Africa, where the authors evaluated the population dynamics of small mammals present in the Autonomous Port of Cotonou, in Benin, Africa. Two main zones of the port were assessed: the industrial port, with warehouses, storage rooms, restaurants, garages and open areas, among other uses, and the artisanal port, with rooms where fresh fish and fishing gears are stores, along with the fresh fish market. Using traps, they were able to find that three of the ‘100 most invasive species’ are present at the study area: the house mice ( Mus musculus ), black rat ( Rattus rattus ) and Norway rat ( Rattus norvegicus ). Two native species were also found, Mastomys natalensis and Crocidura olivieri. The authors found clear trends in the species preferences and co‐occurrences. Norwegian rats and house mice prefer industrial‐like environments, so they are mostly found in the industrial port. The Black rats, on the other hand, are present almost exclusively in the artisanal port. They were also able to determine that control efforts should be carefully planned to show long‐term effective results, involving decision makers and stakeholders at every step of the management process.