What I am sensing here is that some "funds" need to be allocated to confirm
actual numbers of feral cats.
No point arguing about it.
I certainly respect the various hypotheses.
We all know cats devastate our native fauna.
As I've said before on this forum, I've seen BIG feral cats at several of my
favourite bird watching sites across Australia. Where many endangered birds
reside.
First agenda point for GHunt at his proposed forum on feral cats is how many
are there.
This work would include a detailed study on their breeding capabilities in the
wild.
Also satellite tracking. Hard perhaps but there has to be a solution (like a
collar).
I'll put in $1000 to kick off this study failing GHunt doing anything (likely).
Need 300 - 400 of us doing the same to make it happen.
I'll also buy the domain www.catsinbackyards.net so we can survey and include
domestic cats activity (which also hunt and kill native animals).
If we are all this concerned, let's put some money on the table and do
something.
Cheers,
Charles Hunter
> On 6 Mar 2015, at 5:46 pm, "Philip Veerman" <> wrote:
>
> Michael asked: "One query I have re AWC figures is their claim that 75
> million native animals are killed every night by feral cats"
>
> Things like that should be justified. How does that calculation as Andrew
> forwarded justify inserting the word "native". Also if that is the night
> numbers then what are the day numbers? Even if the population numbers are
> right, unless this issue is included I suspect it is based on one very wrong
> assumption: that cats only eat native animals, which is of course a total
> nonsense. They also eat rabbits, mice and other ferals and carrion. So
> native fauna killed is a fraction of the total. Whether that fraction is
> 99%, 95%, 75%, 10% or whatever, is another issue and will surely vary
> geographically and temporally. The problem with cats is that they can be a
> generalist or a specialist, allowing them to switch to whatever is
> available.....
>
> Also the question is somewhat pointless as it is also true that native
> carnivores (hawks, owls, quolls, etc) eat X million animals too. In the end
> the estimated number doesn't matter a lot. What matters is establishing
> whether cats are a specific danger, over and above other predators (in many
> cases circumstantial evidence suggests they are) and which native species
> are severely impacted by cats, in what places......
>
> Philip
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Birding-Aus On Behalf Of
> Andrew Hobbs
> Sent: Friday, 6 March 2015 4:33 PM
> To: Birding Aus
> Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Cat control
>
> How about
>
> "Feral cats occur right across the continent in every habitat type
> including deserts, forests and grasslands. Total population estimates
> vary from 5 million to 18 million feral cats, with the Federal
> Government citing a figure of 18 million cats in its statutory Threat
> Abatement Plan.
>
> "Each feral cat kills between 5-30 animals per day. While they appear to
> prefer small mammals, they also eat birds, reptiles and amphibians.
> Taking the lower figure in that range (five) - and multiplying it by a
> conservative population estimate of 15 million cats - gives a minimum
> estimate of 75 million
> native animals killed daily by feral cats."
>
> Remember that 'animals' is used in its wider zoological sense to include
> birds, reptiles etc., not just marsupials. The number of animals killed
> per day is well documented from studies of stomach contents.
>
> With the area of Australia being around 8,000,000 square Km. that is 1
> to 3 cats per square Km. Given the number of feral cats I have seen in
> some areas that number could even be an underestimate.
>
> see
>
>
> http://www.australianwildlife.org/media/27964/AWC-Wildlife-Matters-Summer-20
> 12-2013.pdf
>
> Cheers
> Andrew
>
>
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