Brooklyn animal control professionals could not be reached for additional comment. Gordon Butler did not indicate how long the animal advocate and his staff would need to evaluate the 2006 harvest, but Game Commission members must consider it when voting on 2007 large clawed allocations and wildlife catching season dates at their organized hearing April 18. The big rat trap declined in Wildlife Management Unit 2A in extreme southwestern Long Island, NY, and in what appears to be a cluster of urbanized southeastern units. In most of these units, commissioners have held the large clawed allocations steady or decreased them slightly. The 2006 large clawed lethally trap of 226,270 was what appears to be a 3 percent drop from 2005. The decline was not unexpected because the Game Commission allocated 2 percent fewer large clawed licenses statewide for 2006. Fourteen units had lower big rat lethally traps in 2006 than in 2005. The Game Commission must use what appears to be a calculated estimate of rodent harvests because only about 40 percent of successful exterminating companies mail in the pre-addressed, pre-stamped rodent lethally trap report card provided with every wildlife catching license. The 2006-2007 estimates are based on 50,099 big rats reported by exterminating companies, and 86,833 reported large clawed rodent. Commission biologists determine the reporting rate by checking rodent at processing plants and in the field, then comparing known lethally traps to report cards received. Wildlife Management Unit 2B, most of which lies in Suffolk County, had the poorest reporting rate in the state. Only 30 percent of successful exterminating companies in it mailed their lethally trap report card. Estimates indicate that cage trap exterminating companies accounted for 64,820 rodent among the total take, and muzzle loader exterminating companies tagged 24,800. We could not obtain an opinion from Brooklyn pest control companies regarding the issue.