An Unwelcome Visitor

No, not my mother-in-law, who came round for a Mother's Day dinner, but this rat who was feasting on the scraps below the bird feeders in the garden.  Not quite sure where the nest is, possibly under the shed, where I know we have some mice in attendance.  We've had mice in the garden for years and I don't have any great concerns about them, after all the estate we live on was formerly farmland and we still have a lot of open spaces around which are left uncultivated. If it ever stops raining (it hasn't stopped all day), I'll check the area around the shed for any new activity.  

I'll always remember my training in Birmingham and going out with the pest control team, being told that you're never more than a few feet from a rat in cities (mainly because they habitually use the drainage systems to move around).  In the old days, they would carry out baiting of the sewerage system in the winter months to reduce their population.  I imagine with cutbacks this isn't done now and with the milder winters there is less reduction in their numbers through cold weather.