We like NY1! But! Really? Per their report:
East Village residents say the playground in Tompkins Square Park has a huge reduction in its rat population, thanks to NY1 For You. After parents contacted NY1, the station called the Parks Department about the rodents and a spokesman said while the agency is not placing rat poison in the park out of concern for the resident red-tailed hawk, the agency has removed groundcover, weeds and low growing shrubs in the park that had sheltered rats.
And the result? Fewer rats a few people say! For starters, every local TV news outlet covered this story and called the Parks Department. Second, it's very questionable if the rat population has thinned out at all. Have you noticed a difference?
Anyway, if any media outlet deserves credit for helping with the problem, it's The Villager. They were the first to report on this back on July 21.
P.S.
Hey NY1! The rats are eating the squirrels now!
I walk across the park almost every day. A few weeks ago I would see a half-dozen or more rats routinely. In the last week or so, I have not seen any. Although I'm sure there are still some there, it seems to me they've made a lot of progress.
ReplyDeleteIs that Lady Gaga?
ReplyDeleteSo when did Irene blow through, about 2 weeks ago? It was a Ratsapalooza that weekend, so. Really?
ReplyDeleteWhen I walked down Avenue A that Sunday morning, The Morning After, the park was SWARMING with rats who had no doubt been flooded out of their burrows from the pounding rain. They surfaced and were scrambling for cover.
I've seen a rat or two at the park -- and by that I mean on any given day, but this was something else entirely.
DOZENS AND DOZENS, I'm telling you, of rats, all swarming the surface at once. I've never seen anything like it.
A handful spilled out onto the sidewalk on Ave A -- I've NEVER seen a rat on the actual sidewalk during the day time -- clearly disoriented but fearless as they sought new shelter from their flooded underground dwellings.
They are not gone. They are just lurking below the surface.
TSP Squirrel Stew
ReplyDelete1 squirrel, cut up
flour
salt and pepper
2 1/2 tablespoons butter
7 cups boiling beer (or water)
1 teaspoon thyme
1 cup corn
3 potatoes, cubed
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
medium onions, sliced
2 cups canned tomatoes with juice
1) Roll the squirrel pieces in flour, salt, and pepper.
2) Brown in butter.
3) Add squirrel and all other ingredients, (with the exception of the tomatoes), to the boiling beer, cover, and simmer for 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
4) Add the tomatoes and continue to simmer another hour.
Um, my Jamaican husband says that the "likkle people" (poor folks) would routinely make rat soup to feed to any child suffering from whooping cough.
ReplyDeleteNot kidding.
So. Maybe I should send that recipe down to the islands. They don't have squirrels but they sure do have rats.
Jeezus.
it may be just me but that one that bobby shot appears to know it and it's relatives, friends and/or neighbors are famous and was actually posin...
ReplyDeleterr
To no one in particular... I think the workers in Tompkins Square Park are dedicated and really care about the place. They are making strides. I was only taking exception with NY1 breezing in and taking credit for absolutely nothing...
ReplyDeleteI agree with rr, it does look like a pose. But we all know what fame and too much attention bring as the rats become celebrities: Rats on crack! Now that's going to be bad! (Great shot, Bobby!)
ReplyDeleteVH,
ReplyDeleteI saw that too after Irene. It was so crazy. The pigeons, rats and squirrels were all fighting each other scrambling around.
After the hurricane they were everywhere. Swarming on A outside the park. I have never seen anything like it...
ReplyDeleteKen, I can't believe you would use canned tomatoes in TSP Squirrel Stew! Only fresh my friend. Only fresh.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very contentious issue BagelGuy!
ReplyDeleteCanned tomatoes are generally fine for cooking (unless it's Mexican). In season, fresh tomatoes that are any good are better left uncooked -- or cooked very briefly! And out of season? No tomatoes at all for me, unless they're cooked from out of a can.
CASE IN (KEN'S) POINT: Totonno's of Coney Island, which makes the best pizza in NYC, uses canned tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteI've been spot checking the past few nights, while strolling around, and am noticing a lot less ratties! The lawn opposite the park is where I'd usually bring people to see the rat parade and it's now a real snooze!
ReplyDeleteNow we just ahve to do something about that river flowing from the NE end of the dog run. Shit is eating up the pavement, yo!
Definitely much fewer almost overnight a week or 2 ago, but then I started to see them again recently.
ReplyDelete