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At the Coast, mice are a popular delicacy among the Mijikenda community. Commonly known as kadzora, it continues to gain prominence in the region, with tourists warming up to the dish. 

When roasted, the delicacy is not only loved by the Giriama, Kauma and Chonyi communities, but also by visitors to the North Coast. The rats are roasted and hawked in the streets of Malindi.

Kadzora was once a highly treasured delicacy among the Mijikenda community, but modernisation destroyed the culture.

The rats are not the same as  house mouses; they are unique and in plenty in the farms during harvest time.

Speaking at the expo at the National Museums of Kenya recently, Dr Lewis Tinga, a Malawian scientist, said that while kadzora is a delicacy among coastal communities, eating house rats is unhealthy. 

According to Elvis Thoya who was born at the Coast and has eaten kadzora  since he was young, the meal now  boosts his sex life in adulthood. 

In Africa, some communities have a long tradition of eating rats.  Local TV personality Larry Madowo grabbed public attention last May in Malawi after he admitted feeding on mice in the Southern Africa country.

Salted or dried, field mice strung on sticks are sold as a delicacy in Malawi markets and roadside stalls. 

The mice are hunted in cornfields after the harvest when they are fat after eating  grains, fruits, grass and the odd insect.

The most widely eaten species is known locally as Kapuku, grey in colour with a shorter tail than common rats.

In Nigeria, the African giant rat is a favourite among all ethnic groups, says Mojisola Oyarekua, from the University of Science and Technology Ifaki-Ekiti (Usti) Nigeria.

“It is regarded as a special delicacy and it is more expensive than equivalent weight of beef or fish,” he says.