Italy's mayor makes a meal out of rodent problem

Michele Marchi says it tastes like rabbit but not everyone likes the idea of eating coypu. Photo / 123RF

As Italy struggles to deal with burgeoning populations of a giant rodent, a mayor has come up with a novel solution — eat them.

Coypu were introduced to Italy a century ago from their native South America to be farmed for their fur. But many escaped or were released after wearing fur fell out of fashion, and the species is now thriving.

They have fared particularly well in the flatlands of the Po valley in northern Italy, where farmers complain that they devour crops and destroy levees and embankments by digging burrows.

In the region of Emilia-Romagna alone there are believed to be around one million, while Lombardy has a population of around 1.3 million, with the regional government calling for 300,000 to be culled each year.

Michele Marchi, the mayor of the town of Gerre de' Caprioli, has suggested that numbers could be reduced if Italians developed a taste for coypu meat. His proposal, launched on his Facebook page, has caused a lively social media debate, with some people in favour of the idea and others revolted by the prospect of eating what looks like a cross between a beaver and a large rat.

"The debate about coypu has become bonkers, without coming to any resolution of the problem," the 31-year-old mayor wrote. "Here's my idea — let's start eating them in restaurants and at village food festivals."

The mayor said he was speaking from practical experience, having eaten coypu meat. "It's almost better than rabbit," he said.

One enthusiastic backer of the idea wrote: "Coypus are very clean animals and they are herbivores. I've tried them a few times. They should be cooked in a stew with onions or baked in the oven. I agree with the mayor — it's better than rabbit."

Animal lovers were less enamoured of the idea. "Here's another genius who thinks he can resolve a problem by killing defenceless animals. And they elected him mayor," wrote one critic.

Coypu have adapted well to a range of different habitats in Italy. They can even be seen in the middle of Rome, nibbling on sedges on the banks of the Tiber.

They breed prolifically, with a female capable of giving birth to up to a dozen young at a time.

In their native range they are eaten by alligators, large snakes and eagles.

A lack of such predators in Europe has contributed to their rapid population growth.

- Telegraph Group Ltd