Overview

• Alderperson Timmy Knudsen’s resolution for a yearlong Lincoln Park pilot was referred to the environmental protection committee and proposed deploying peanut butter-scented contraceptive pellets in three experiment and three control blocks.
• Private partners including Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago Bird Alliance and Department of Streets and Sanitation raised $40,000 to supply the non-toxic pellets.
• Lincoln Park Zoo scientists will monitor camera footage to compare rat interactions and reproduction rates across treated and untreated blocks.
• The initiative builds on earlier trials in Wicker Park and Bucktown and addresses concerns after great horned owls died from anticoagulant rodenticide exposure.
• Should the August launch prove effective at reducing rat fertility without harming wildlife the city could adopt the method citywide.