Deer mice on the Gulf Islands off the coast of Vancouver are also twice the size of those living on the mainland. The rodents have also developed an unusual carnivorous behaviour, preying on live and dead chicks that nest on the island. The great majority of extreme sized island rodents were extremely big – 42% of all island populations, 16.8 times the frequency on the mainland.
The larger size could suggest that a form of ‘immigrant selection’ was at work, with greater success of large-bodied individuals surviving dispersal over water. Without predators and with an abundance of food, these rodents often grow in size and can threaten native animal populations. Deer mice on the Gulf Islands are twice the size of those living on the mainland. The species were one of 60 that the researchers at Duke University studied in their research. In other parts of the world, such as Santa Catalina Island off the coast of California, ground squirrels have grown into giants without the competition for food from chipmunks and other squirrel species. gogreenpestcontrol.ca Go Green Pest Control Delta Pest Control Ladner Pest Control Tsawwassen Pest Control Randy Bilesky http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3135987/Beware-giant-RODENTS-Island-life-transforms-mice-rats-supersized-monsters-study-reveals.html