The country's rat problem is continuing to cause issues, with a bus stop and beach boardwalk in an upmarket Auckland suburb the latest to fall victim to the rodents.
Orākei Ward councillor Desley Simpson posted photos of the damage on her Facebook page, showing holes dug by the animals around the boardwalk and public benches in St Heliers.
"RATS!! - yes it's pretty obvious we have them in St Heliers," she wrote in her post.
Ms Simpson told Fairfax she was worried about the stability of the benches, saying the rats were "as big as a human fist".
Along with the photos, Ms Simpson posted a video where she spoke with Auckland Council's senior arboriculture and eco specialist Clive Barnes.
According to Mr Barnes, bait stations are in place in St Heliers to try and combat the problem.
Initially, he says, rats will be fed peanut butter to lure them away from the berries they are currently feasting on before that is replaced with a more sinister meal.
"They'll feed on those for a week or so, or two weeks, and we'll then monitor how much bait has been taken and then at that point we'll fill them with poison bait, which they will then continue to eat and take home."
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Mr Barnes stressed that the poisoned rats would not end up strewn around the footpath.
"The benefit of having the poisoned bait is that they take it back to their home and then they'll fall asleep in their home where they feel comfortable and stay there in the holes."
Mr Barnes says the bait stations have had extra protection placed around them to make sure local pets are safe.
"They are industry-standard bait stations. There should be no way that anything larger than a rat can get in there to get the poison.
There will also be signage placed around the area alerting residents to what is going on.
The damage in St Heliers is just the latest trouble rats are causing in the country. Last month the rodents moved into Titirangi, attracted by food left for stray chickens.
The rat population has also exploded in Nelson, causing damage to crops.
Newshub.
