BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston has again been ranked among the “rattiest” cities in America and the pesky rodents in the city started exhibiting “aggressive” behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report.

Orkin last week released its “Top 50 Rattiest Cities” list with Boston checking in at 13th on the ranking. The top five cities didn’t budge, with Chicago taking the top spot for the seventh consecutive time.

During an unprecedented last year, the visibility of rodents increased and their behavioral traits changed, the pest control company said.

“The pandemic-driven closure of restaurants forced rodents to find new food sources. Without food waste to consume, these pests were seen scavenging new areas and exhibiting unusual or aggressive behavior,” Orkin wrote in the report.

The presence of rodents became so relevant that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued rodent control guidance on ways to keep rats and mice out of homes and businesses.

Ben Hottel, an Orkin entomologist, said homes currently offer the best habitat for rodents after a year of depleted resources but noted that food availability for rodents will rise again as people resume normal activities.

The top 50 rattiest cities were ranked as follows:

  1. Chicago
  2. Los Angeles
  3. New York
  4. Washington, D.C.
  5. San Francisco
  6. Baltimore (+2)
  7. Philadelphia
  8. Detroit (-2)
  9. Denver
  10. Cleveland, Oh. (+1)
  11. Seattle (+1)
  12. Minneapolis (-2)
  13. Boston
  14. Indianapolis (+1)
  15. Atlanta (-1)
  16. Pittsburgh (+2)
  17. San Diego (+2)
  18. Houston (-1)
  19. Cincinnati (+3)
  20. Dallas (-4)
  21. Hartford, Conn. (+6)
  22. Milwaukee (+2)
  23. Miami (-3)
  24. Portland, Or. (-1)
  25. Kansas City (+5)
  26. Columbus, Oh. (+2)
  27. Norfolk, Va. (-2)
  28. Richmond, Va. (+5)
  29. Sacramento (+7)
  30. St. Louis (+7)
  31. Albany, New York (+7)
  32. Grand Rapids (-3)
  33. New Orleans (-12)
  34. Flint, Mich. (+8)
  35. Raleigh, N.C. (-9)
  36. Nashville (-2)
  37. Champaign, Ill. (+2)
  38. Portland, Me. (+26)
  39. Burlington, Va. (+8)
  40. Louisville, Ky. (+13)
  41. Buffalo, New York
  42. Charlotte (-11)
  43. Phoenix (-11)
  44. Greenville, S.C. (-9)
  45. Green Bay
  46. Syracuse (-2)
  47. Charleston, W.V. (+4)
  48. Dayton (+1)
  49. Albuquerque (-1)
  50. Tampa (-9)

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