Two thousand dead mice have been dropped on Guam in a bid to kill millions of brown snakes (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)

Scientists have dropped 2,000 mice onto the US territory of Guam in the hope of killing the island’s brown snake infestation.

The dead rodents were injected with painkillers in the hope of eliminating the species of snake officials claim is responsible for inflicting millions of dollars of damage.

If the experiment on Andersen Air Force Base proves successful the $8million (£4.9million) project could be extended across the territory in a bid to eradicate the millions of brown snakes.

US Department of Agriculture wildlife services biologist Dan Vice said people shouldn’t be worried about other animals eating the deadly mice.




‘The risk to non targets is slight,’ he said.

‘It would take 500 baits to kill a pig (or dog and) 15 baits to kill a cat.’

Brown snakes are reportedly killing off a native species of bird in Guam.

NBC News also claims the snakes are causing at least 80 power cuts a year by wriggling into electric substations and shutting down them down.