CDC warns of aggressive cannibal rats facing shortage of garbage to eat

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“Community-wide closures have led to a decrease in food available to rodents, especially in dense commercial areas,” the CDC said in recently updated rodent-control guidelines.

“Some jurisdictions have reported an increase in rodent activity as rodents search for new sources of food. Environmental health and rodent control programs may see an increase in service requests related to rodents and reports of unusual or aggressive rodent behavior.”

Elevated levels of rat aggression has been observed in New York, where there are increased reports of cannibalism and infanticide, and New Orleans, where unusual rat behavior was caught on CCTV.

“I turn the corner, there’s about 30 rats at the corner, feasting on something in the middle of the street,” Bourbon street tour guide Charles Marsala told CBS News.

Complaints in Chicago have included reports of infestations in housing blocks as rodents seek new sources of food.

Some rodent experts predicted increased urban rat aggression.

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