Wildlife

Mice Plague

Adult albatrosses on a remote island are being attacked and eaten by an aggressive invasive species — mice.

Invasive mice have been wreaking havoc on the ecosystem of Marion Island — located about halfway between South Africa and Antarctica — for decades, chowing down on native invertebrates and the chicks of many seabirds that breed there. But the latest discovery is the first time they've been documented attacking adult albatrosses on the island. Researchers found the bodies of eight adult wandering albatrosses that had died within weeks of each other.