Trapping of Rodent Pests in Riyadh Region , Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Trapping of Rodent pests ; with different types of traps and baits, was conducted in four locations inside and outside the city of Riyadh . Four species of rodents belonging to the families Muridae and Cricetidae were recorded . Rattus rattus was the dominant species in the indoor and Meriones libycus , Mus musculus , and Acomys dimidiatus were in the out door locations . Types of bait and position and orientation of traps affected trapping efficiencies .The most attractive baits were semi-dried dates and wheat grains . Snap traps, specially those arranged oppositely in duplicates , proved to be the most efficient . Rodent populations in different locations were not enough to conduct an experiment for the chemical control with rodenticides .