PICTURE: A feral cat drinks at a pond in Mungo national park, NSW. Feral cats have the greatest environmental impact in Australia. Photograph: Genevieve Vallee/Alamy
National co-odination required says ISC
ADVOCATES ARE CALLING for an urgent and coordinated national response to the threat of invasive species after the co-authors of a major international report identified it as the leading driver of biodiversity loss in Australia.
Invasive species lead driver of biodiversity loss in Australia – and feral cats have biggest impact, report finds, is the headline to this story by Donna Lu (Science Writer, The Guardian, 5 September 2023)
A national response is urgently needed to prevent further extinction of native flora and fauna, according to the Invasive Species Council (ISC).
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Predation by feral cats
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT is seeking feedback on the draft updated threat abatement plan for predation by feral cats.
Feral cats kill over 1.5 billion native mammals, birds, reptiles and frogs, and 1.1 billion invertebrates each year in Australia. Predation by cats is a threat to over 200 nationally listed threatened species and they have been implicated in 28 mammal extinctions. They are a major cause of decline for many land-based endangered animals such as the bilby, bandicoot, bettong and numbat. They can also carry infectious diseases which can be transmitted to native animals, domestic livestock and humans.
Reducing the impact of this introduced predator on our native species will support their populations to recover. Threat abatement plans establish a nation-al framework to guide and coordinate Australia’s response to key threats, like feral cats, that impact on our threatened species and ecological communities. The plans identify research, management and other actions stakeholders across Australia can take to ensure the long-term survival of native species and ecological communities.
The consultation and call for submissions ends on 11 December 2023.
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Cat poised to prey on innocent wildlife
NO COLLAR, NO BELL, no warning that this supposedly cute and cuddly domestic cat is steeling itself to pounce on whatever live animal it can find in the native bushes in this Macquarie Hills suburban backyard.
Scientists tell us that this is being repeated thousands of times across the country, and that the Lake Macquarie local government area would be no exception. The need to have domestic cats contained to their parents’ premises 24/7 becomes more urgent with every passing day.
MMM … Issue 40, October – November 2023
