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| From: jj® | 21/12/2001 0:03:29 |
| Subject: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24247 |
| I subscribe (lurk on) an eamil list in which a contibutor has asked, "Could anyone put me in touch with someone conducting research on feral cat impacts ? especially with regard to herpetofauna." I thought there might be a few knowledgable people here that could help. jj | |
| From: chrisy® | 21/12/2001 7:40:01 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24251 |
| "He may be cute and fluffy but Puss is Australia's biggest serial killer" This quote from ecology expert Sue Hutchings of Deakin University who was just completed her PhD on the effects of cats on the environment. Some facts and figures from Dr Hutchings work * On avergae every dom cat in Vic kiled 16 mammals, 5 birds, 5 reptiles a year * Cats have wiped out some bird species and put others on the endagered list. 38 avian species including the Stephens Island wren have disappeared to cats * In 1991 there were an estimated 900,000 dom cats in Vic plus 300,000 stray cats and 200,000 feral cats * Taking dom cats average kille above, 900,000 pet cats times 26 wildlife = 23 million native Australian animals die each year from cat attacks in Victoria alone * 300,000 stray cats estimated to kill 5 native animals weekly = 78 million native Australian animals dead from stray cats each year in Victoria * Feral cats need to eat the equivalent to 7 native bush rats or 10 native birds each week * 200,000 feral cats each estimated to kill 10 native birds weekly x 52 weeks = 104 million native birds a year * Do the sums, that is 205 million native animals killed by cats in Victoria each year Very unsustainable hey? Although, before we spin into a cat hating thread, can we all remeber that without us humans introducing them here, and worse setting them free to become feral or letting our pets roam outside these numbers wouldn't be realised. Cats are not the cause of these figures, each and everyone one of us are!!!! | |
| From: Speedy | 21/12/2001 7:50:32 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24253 |
| Not sure jj, but I have recently been investigating the impact of Common (Indian) Mynas which led me to the CSIRO web page. After querying with them, they promptly referred my onto another organisation, which had all the information I was after. Might be worth asking the CSIRO. | |
| From: chrisy® | 21/12/2001 7:51:53 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24254 |
| Any wildlife govt dept should be able to provide you with relevant stats, the NSW NPWS has a pamphlet on feral cats. | |
| From: jj | 21/12/2001 7:55:14 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24255 |
| Thanks Chrisy for the info AND the reminder ... jj | |
| From: jj | 21/12/2001 7:58:25 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24256 |
| ... and the extra info too ... and speedy ... because it is a science list I am "reading only" I am assuming that the person enquiring already knows a lot ... but just thought it worth adding this lists' suggestions as weel ... All info will be taken on board by me anyhow though, because I compile my own info "data base" on thes things for future ref. Thanks agan ... jj | |
| From: Jagman® | 21/12/2001 13:14:39 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24295 |
| I would strongly suspect that the figures for feral cats are very conservative in that study, I don't doubt the figures about what they need to eat (although don't forget they also eat a lot of house mice in cropping areas). I have learn't from long experience that there are always a lot more feral cats around than you think. Foxes are allegedly the cunning ones, but I have managed to as good as eradicate them on ,my property before (no evidence of fox scavenging on dead sheep and no tracks)even though it is always repopulated after a few months by neighbouring properties. But no matter how often or how many cats I shoot, I am always finding prints, even in my house yard. If I were to go out and conduct a top to bottom search of this farm I would maybe find about five cats, and search as I might find no more. Trouble is I might go out two weeks later and find five different cats, and go on doing this for some time. I would estimate that at peak times (just before wheat and rice harvest when mouse numbers are sky high) there would be at least 20 cats whose ranges intersect at least some part of the farm (640 acres), and this is when I am shooting them. My grandfathers farm, about 5 k's away doesn't get shot on very often, and at anytime there at the very least twenty cats, and more just after the kittens have been born and before they disperse. Lets make a very conservative estimate of five cats on an average irrigation farm, allowing for overlap. In the murrumbidgee irrigation area, only including north of the river from Narrandera to Griffith shire, there are at least a thousand farms, again very conseravtive and only irrigation farms. That makes conservatively five thousand feral cats in the local area, and that is not including bushland and dry area farms, which, while they have a lower population make up about half of the area I have described. As to thier impact however, introduced house mice make up the bulk of the diet on an irrigation farm, esp for younger cats, with perhaps 25% native birds (there are no native small fauna here) for the older better hunters. This estimate is made from inspecting droppings, the occasional stomach content and evidence of bird kills. Cats in bushland however would have a much higher percentage of native kills, because mice don't thrive as well on the rocky hills where most of the local bushland survives, and dry area farms somewhere in between depending on the cropping practices. Oh, and my main point which I forgot to mention, is that in NSW, feral cat no.s would at least equal domestic cats. I suppose victoria is more densely populated, but I am sure that ferals would at least equal strays, the trouble is, strays are much easier to find and count. | |
| From: boxhead® | 21/12/2001 15:38:40 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24362 |
| Yo Jagman. Just a little suggestion, could you put some paragraphs in your posts please, it makes them easier to read for people who are easily distracted (that's me) :) A double carriage return every now and then makes it easier on the eyes. Just for example :) | |
| From: Jagman® | 21/12/2001 15:45:03 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24364 |
| Fair enough Boxy, normally I'm just so focused on getting it all out of my head I forget that I'm putting it down to be read, not reading it too someone. I'll try and think of that in future. Thanks for pointing it out. Is this better? Just mucking with ya ;-P | |
| From: boxhead® | 21/12/2001 15:50:20 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24365 |
| Damn, I meant to put this in the chat thread :( I know what you mean about just letting it flow Jag :) No Worries At All ;) | |
| From: chrisy® | 22/12/2001 7:22:46 |
| Subject: re: Feral Cats: Impacts of ... | post id: 24569 |
| I agree that the results from the study l posted are questionable, especially since l do not have any info on how these numbers were arived at. However the beauty of these figures is that we have a figure, although rubbery on the impact of cats on wildlife. Until we can arrive at figures, it is very hard to communicate the effects of cats to say people who don't own rice farms, etc etc....... I used these figures, well the ones tht suggested that every dom cat ate...blah blah in a recent column. Just to try and get across that all cats impact, l am just so sick of the not my cat/dog syndrome, a bit like nimby A side comment.... rescued an adult kooka the other day, lady asked now that l have you here can you answer a question... we had a koala and a baby around here, then one day when l was out we came back and the baby was dead without its head (?!). I asked do you have dogs around here, yes but only mine, who is sweet, blah blah blah Then she goes on to say they are puzzled at how it got into the dog pen, since they have fenced it so the dog cannot get out. Not mentioning the over hanging tree you know? A neighbour suggested that an eagle could have dropped it in there. Then she mentions that all of it guts were ripped out....... BUT it really wasn't her dog as when she got home the dog didn't want anything to do with it, just laid next to it. I mean really what can l say..........? "IT WAS YOUR DOG STUPID" | |
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