Residents of an Edinburgh suburb have reported growing number of rats at the entrance to a local park.
The undesirable rat packs have been cropping up at the entrance to Roseburn Park, in the Roseburn area west of the city centre, in recent weeks. Video captured by a member of the public, passed to Edinburgh Live, shows three rats ducking away under a fence.
The clip appears to show the animals tucking into bird seed that has been dumped on a patch of grass. Locals claim that someone in the area is leaving bird seed out that the rats are feeding on, and fear that it may be attracting more of the little nuisances from further afield.
One local resident, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "In this instance, there's no mystery. It's one person who feeds the rats and birds despite various complaints."
Poison pellets have reportedly been deployed in the area after reports of the rats began coming in. The City of Edinburgh Council says it has undertaken "live baiting" programmes in recent weeks; locals say they have seen piles of dead rats nearby.
Pest controllers have been called out to the Edinburgh West Retail Park a mile and a half away in recent weeks. The local authority has encouraged people who see rats or evidence of burrowing to get in touch.
Edinburgh Live had contacted the council for comment.
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