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Mice plague hits biblical proportions across New South Wales farms

May 5, 2011 Comments off

heraldsun

mice plague

Mice are at plague proportions in the NSW Riverina area. Source: The Daily Telegraph Source: Supplied

DROUGHTS, locusts and floods – now a mouse plague threatens to cripple winter crops.

With an estimated 8000 mice per hectare, farmers are fighting a losing war against the pint-sized enemy, which eats seedlings as quickly as they can be planted and chews through new crops.

Describing the vermin as “intelligent and crafty”, NSW Riverina farmer John Pattison said their natural predators had disappeared after recent weather events, allowing them to multiply at a fast rate.

Not seen in such numbers for 15 years, they hide underground and grab the seed as it germinates.

Primary Industries Minister Katrina Hodgkinson said she would move swiftly to increase the production of poison to meet demand.

The worst affected areas are Hillston, Wentworth, Warren, Parkes and Griffith, with mouse activity and damage also reported in other areas across the Central West, Darling, Lachlan, Hume and Riverina.

Riverina firefighters have blamed mice for chewing through wire and starting a fire which almost killed a dairy farmer. Six people have also tested positive for a rare disease carried by mice.

Categories: disease and pestilence Tags: , ,

How Far Does Silver Fall?

May 5, 2011 Comments off

goldsilver

With silver dropping roughly 19% in the last three days, a correction is clearly under way. Let’s take a quick look at how far it might drop.

I’ve updated the “corrections” chart, which shows all major pullbacks in silver since our bull market began in 2001. The data measure any clearly visible drop in price greater than 10%, regardless of time length. As you’ll see, some drops occurred over short periods of time, while others were prolonged.

It’s clear that silver has had some large and scary sell-offs. But the “silver” lining to that fact is the realization that our current volatility is perfectly normal.

The average of all corrections is 19%. Applied to our high of $48.70 on April 28, silver would fall to Read more…

Categories: GOLD, Precious Metals, Silver Tags: , , , ,