Eccleshall has been the site for an operational biofuel power station since September 2007, fuelled by elephant grass, the majority of which is grown by local farmers within a 30-mile radius.
An important food item is often elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) but this rat is opportunistic and will also feed on crops such as groundnut, maize, sweet potato, cassava and pumpkin.
The larvae are a pest on Saccharum officinarum, although they also feed on other plants, including Saccharum robustum, Saccharum spontaneum, Saccharum edule, Pennisetum purpureum and Panicum maximum.
Pennisetum purpureum | Pennisetum clandestinum | Pennisetum setaceum | Lamium purpureum | Chondrostereum purpureum | Chlorogalum purpureum |
The northern part is within the Sahel zone while southern sector has a typical Sudan–Guinea Savanna ecology, and includes Acacia-Balanites woodlands separated by dense stands of Elephant grass and Sorghum.