Rats Community, Attack, and Its Control Efforts on Smallholder Oil Palm In Kuantan Singingi

Abstract

Rats are one of the animals that can cause damage to oil palm plants. The mature plants can be losses up to 50% of total CPO/ha/year and 80% damage to immature crops. Changes in the composition of forests to oil palm will affect the population and species of rats. Research about rat communities in smallholder oil pam plantations in Kuantan Singingi Regency was conducted in seven districts in Kuantan Singingi. This study used a survey method. Location for observations determined based on the area of smallholder oil palm plantations located in one stretch with a minimum of 10 ha. At each location, 20 rat traps have installed the size of 30 cm x 20 cm x 15 cm and using bait grilled salted fish and grilled coconut (10 for each). Trapping was carried out for 7 days per location. A total of 575 individual rats were caught and observed in this study with the average catch per location being 82,14 individual rats. Four type of rats were found, namely Rattus tiomanicus (56,34%), Rattus argentiventer (42,43%), Rattus rattus (0,70%) and Rattus exulans (0,53%). Generally, the sex ratio of rats at the site of the study was dominated by the sex of females with a value of 0,97. Meanwhile, the dominant preference for bait is grilled coconut which is caught by as many as 319 individual of rats, while-grilled salted fish by only 256 individuals rats. The percentage of oil palm attacked in these smallholder oil palm plantations is 37,19% while the efforts to control rat pests carried out by the oil palm farmer groups are by installing poison bait, installing traps, and hunting rats.