Biology and Impacts of Pacific Island Invasive Species. 7. The Domestic Cat (<i>Felis catus</i>)

Duffy, David Cameron; Capece, Paula I.

doi:10.2984/66.2.7

Cited by 45 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 214 publications

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“…This search returned 771 records, which we inspected to determine whether invasive alien predators were identified as a known or likely threat to each species (n = 703 species identified as negatively impacted by invasive predators). We crosschecked this list against previous reviews (1,18,20,(44)(45)(46)(47)(48) and added 35 additional threatened species recorded as being negatively affected by invasive predators, but not revealed in our Red List search. Given the small number of additional species identified and the broad geographic coverage of the previous studies used for cross-checking, we do not consider that this exercise brings any systematic bias to our analyses.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss

Doherty

Glen

Nimmo

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

911

713

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Invasive species threaten biodiversity globally, and invasive mammalian predators are particularly damaging, having contributed to considerable species decline and extinction. We provide a global metaanalysis of these impacts and reveal their full extent. Invasive predators are implicated in 87 bird, 45 mammal, and 10 reptile species extinctions-58% of these groups' contemporary extinctions worldwide. These figures are likely underestimated because 23 critically endangered species that we assessed are classed as "possibly extinct." Invasive mammalian predators endanger a further 596 species at risk of extinction, with cats, rodents, dogs, and pigs threatening the most species overall. Species most at risk from predators have high evolutionary distinctiveness and inhabit insular environments. Invasive mammalian predators are therefore important drivers of irreversible loss of phylogenetic diversity worldwide. That most impacted species are insular indicates that management of invasive predators on islands should be a global conservation priority. Understanding and mitigating the impact of invasive mammalian predators is essential for reducing the rate of global biodiversity loss.I nvasive mammalian predators ("invasive predators" hereafter) are arguably the most damaging group of alien animal species for global biodiversity (1-3). Species such as cats (Felis catus), rats (Rattus rattus), mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus), and stoats (Mustela erminea) threaten biodiversity through predation (4, 5), competition (6), disease transmission (7), and facilitation with other invasive species (8). The decline and extinction of native species due to invasive predators can have impacts that cascade throughout entire ecosystems (9). For example, predation by feral cats and red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) has led to the decline or extinction of two thirds of Australia's digging mammal species over the past 200 y (10, 11). Reduced disturbance to topsoil in the absence of digging mammals has led to impoverished landscapes where little organic matter accumulates and rates of seed germination are low (10). In the Aleutian archipelago, predation of seabirds by introduced Arctic foxes (Alopex lagopus) has lowered nutrient input and soil fertility, ultimately causing vegetation to transform from grasslands to dwarf shrub/forb-dominated systems (12).Mitigating the negative impacts of invasive mammalian predators is a primary goal of conservation agencies worldwide (1,13,14). Regardless, there remains no global synthesis of the role of invasive predators in species declines and extinctions (but see refs. 3 and 15). Here, we quantify the number of bird, mammal, and reptile species threatened by, or thought to have become extinct (since AD 1500) due to, invasive mammalian predators. We use metaanalysis to examine taxonomic and geographic trends in these impacts and show how the severity of predator impacts varies according to species endemicity and evolutionary distinctiveness. Results and DiscussionIn total, 596 threatened and 142 extinc...

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss

Doherty

Glen

Nimmo

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

911

713

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“…Small mammals were evenly distributed across the landscape studied and form the majority of the diet for feral cats (Paltridge ; Duffy & Capece ). Feral cats were also evenly distributed giving confidence that the PPRI was representative of the study areas.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…). Feral cats are obligate carnivores and are able to obtain their water requirements almost entirely from their food (Duffy & Capece ). As a result, cats prefer live prey such as rabbits, small mammals and lizards (Scott ; Mac Donald et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predicting bait uptake by feral cats, Felis catus, in semi‐arid environments

Christensen¹,

Ward²,

Sims³

2012

Eco Management Restoration

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Summary Feral cat control using aerial broadcasting of toxic baits continues to be used in the rangelands of Western Australia. The effectiveness of these operations has sometimes been compromised by different environmental factors that affect prey and cat numbers. This study demonstrates that the ratio of cats to their preferred prey (small mammals) can be used to predict the most effective time to bait. The regular baiting of three conservation sites offered an opportunity to study the relationship between feral cat abundance, the abundance of their prey and ingestion of toxic baits. Peron Peninsula on the mid‐west coast, Lorna Glen station in the northern Goldfields and the central Gibson Desert of Western Australia are sites where cat control using toxic baits has been routinely applied over the last 15 years. We postulated that bait ingestion by cats was linked to the availability of live prey. Small mammal abundance (capture rates in pit‐fall traps) and relative cat abundance (based on daily track counts) were assessed at these sites and the data used to produce a predator‐prey ratio index (PPRI). We used generalised linear mixed models to test the effect of prey abundance, prebaiting cat abundance and PPRI on baiting efficacy (BE). The best model for predicting efficacy of baiting contained only PPRI. This simple model was able to predict baiting success over the entire range of outcomes, from highly successful ( >75% cat reduction) to unsuccessful (0% cat reduction). The ability to predict feral cat BE in advance of planned toxic baiting operations will provide a valuable tool for wildlife managers involved in cat control.

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“…The cat (Felis catus) has been identified as one of the world's most invasive species (Duffy & Capece, 2012;Lowe, Browne, Boudjelas, & De Poorter, 2000). Yet it is also the most common companion animal in many countries including New Zealand (Argante, 2008;MacKay and NZCAC, 2011) and as a consequence populations of cats (either as pets or un-owned) are in general associated spatially with human populations (Ferreira, Leitão, Santos-Reis, & Revilla, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the stray domestic cat (Felis catus) population in New Zealand: Species distribution modelling with a climate change scenario and implications for protected areas

2015

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a b s t r a c tSpecies distribution models of stray cats were developed using two types of occurrence data: (i) a combined dataset of stray cats and cat colonies in Auckland and projected to the wider New Zealand area; and (ii) population density as an analogue for country-wide stray cat occurrence. These occurrence data, together with sets of environmental variables were used as input to the Maxent modelling tool to produce maps of suitability for the species. Environmental variables used in the models consist of current bioclimatic conditions, and a future climate scenario (RCP8.5 for year 2070 CCSM model). Commonly occurring bias in the modelling process due to latitude, the area for selecting background points in model evaluation, inherent spatial autocorrelation of occurrence points, and correlated bioclimatic variables were explicitly addressed. Results show that the North Island consistently provide more suitable areas for stray cats with increased suitability in a high emission climate change condition. Key protected areas at risk from the increased suitability to stray cats are also presented.

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Biology and Impacts of Pacific Island Invasive Species. 7. The Domestic Cat (Felis catus)

Cited by 45 publications

References 214 publications

Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss

Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss

Predicting bait uptake by feral cats, Felis catus, in semi‐arid environments

Mapping the stray domestic cat (Felis catus) population in New Zealand: Species distribution modelling with a climate change scenario and implications for protected areas

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