I'm Pete Schwaba, host of Wisconsin Public Television's
Director's Cut.
If you think you smell a rat, you're not mistaken
because tonight we take you
to the bayou of Louisiana
for the documentary
Rodents of Unusual Size.
After a decade of hurricanes and oil spills,
fisherman Thomas Gonzales and the people of his community
face a new threat,
scores of twenty-pound rats known as Nutria,
an invasive species of rodent from South America.
When described, these rodents sound like something
out of a low-budget horror film.
They have long orange teeth and a voracious appetite
and they actually eat coastal wetlands
that protect the coastline from hurricanes.
They also breed faster than they can be killed
and therein lies the challenge
for Gonzales and his fellow vigilante hunters,
who are trying to protect themselves and save Louisiana
before it literally disappears from under their feet.
There is a trio of award winning non-fiction filmmakers behind
Rodents, Quinn Costello, Chris Metzler, and Jeff Springer.
They've joined forces many times and are always in search of
stories involving environmental, scientific, and cultural issues
that affect society.
Each of them also has a fascination with the swamp
and the rodents that roam within.
Those of you who do not identify as vermin-friendly,
not everyone feels these giant rats are repulsive.
Some Louisianians keep them as pets and others eat them.
It's man against beast.
May the best mammal win.
Rodents of Unusual Size starts now
on Wisconsin Public Television,
your home for independent film.