Home ranges of introduced mammalian carnivores at Trounson Kauri Park, Northland, New Zealand

Abstract

At Trounson Kauri Park, we monitored the movements of 21 feral cats (Felis catus), 11 stoats (Mustela erminea) and one male ferret (Mustelafuro). In feral cats, the average minimum home range was 446 ha (±82 SE) for 14 males, significantly larger than the average minimum of 117 ha (±40 SE) for seven females. In stoats the average minimum home range was 107 ha (±20 SE), for nine males compared with 81 ha (±31 SE) for two females. The single male ferret had a minimum home range of 197 ha. Adult male feral cats lived on apparently separate, non-overlapping home ranges; females occupied exclusive home ranges which were overlapped by adult males; home ranges of sub-adult male feral cats overlapped those of other sub-adult male, adult male and female feral cats. The home ranges of two neighbouring male stoats overlapped, although their core ranges did not; both these and the ferret's home ranges overlapped those of the neighbouring feral cats. The feral cats were often located in cover in pastureland or near the edge of larger tracts of forest within their home ranges; stoats near waterways in the larger tracts of forest; and the ferret near the forest/pasture margins of Trounson Kauri Park. Our results suggest that control devices targeting all these species should be set at a minimum spacing of 800 m in order to put the majority of the resident and immigrant predators at risk.

Spatial ecology meets eradication of feral cats on Auckland Island

“…Following the proposed eradication of mice on Auckland Island (Horn et al 2022), prey availability will be reduced, and cat population density may also be reduced via secondary poisoning (eating toxic mice) (e.g. Gillies & Pierce 1999). Therefore, we would predict that cats will increase the size of their home ranges.…”

Management of cats in Aotearoa New Zealand: a review of current knowledge and research needs

“…However, the effectiveness of baiting is variable and successful campaigns often involve a combination of baiting and trapping (Algar et al 2013). Secondary poisoning of cats can occur during baiting operations targeting rats and other pests, although the success rate is not well understood (Alterio 1996(Alterio , 2000Gillies & Pierce 1999;Heyward & Norbury 1999;Elliott & Kemp 2016). Given that multi-species pest management programmes are more cost-effective and deliver better outcomes (Springer 2018), further research should investigate ways to improve secondary poisoning of cats (among other pests).…”

Trials with non-toxic baits for stoats and feral cats

“…Feral cats (Felis catus; defined as self-sustaining cat populations that live independently of people sensu Doherty et al 2015a) occur globally, having been introduced to all continents except Antarctica (Lepczyk & Duffy 2017). They inhabit a diverse range of ecosystems, including urban areas (Mirmovitch 1995;Normand et al 2019), deserts (Moseby et al 2009;Johnston et al 2014), forests (Gillies et al 2007;Harper 2007) and agricultural landscapes (Langham & Porter 1991;Hansen et al 2018), and cause biodiversity losses (Medina et al 2011;Woinarski et al 2011;Doherty et al 2015b). Cats also transmit diseases such as Toxoplasma gondii to domestic animals like sheep (Ovis aries) (Buxton et al 2007;Dempster et al 2011), native species such as the North Island kākā (Nestor meridionalis), kererū (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae), the North Island brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli) (Howe et al 2014), and even aquatic species such as Hector's and Māui dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori and C. h. maui) are known to be affected (Roberts et al 2021).…”