‘They’re everywhere’: Rodent boom overwhelms California farms
… Once rodents have settled in on one farm, they can spread to neighboring properties, creating a pervasive — and expensive — problem. The creatures chew through irrigation lines and equipment wires, pull bark from trees and feast on ripening fruit and nuts. Last month, the California Almond Board said rodents had racked up more than $300 million in damages to the state’s almond orchards between fall 2023 and fall 2024. The main culprit was roof rats, a species that has also plagued homes and restaurants in the South Bay. … [H]igher rainfall could also be a factor, since it fosters the low vegetation that gives the creatures shelter. A broader theory posits that shorter, warmer winters associated with a changing climate extend the rodents’ foraging and breeding season.