Scivillage.com Casual Discussion Science Forum

https://www.npr.org/2023/12/12/121889558...nvironment

EXCERPT: What's the big deal? Scientists reviewed more than 100 years' worth of scientific studies to gain a better understanding of which animals free-ranging cats will prey upon or scavenge.

• The resulting paper, published in Nature Communications, found that free-ranging cats (including domestic and feral) will eat 2,084 different species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and insects. There were even cows on that list, though they were probably the result of scavenging rather than hunting.
  
• The list of creatures cats have chowed on includes 347 species of conservation concern, including Newell's shearwater, green sea turtles, the northern bobwhite quail and the little brown bat.
  
• While cute, cats are skilled predators, so much so that they've been documented as a major threat to the biodiversity of bird species in North America.
  
• They're also linked to the extinction of more than 60 species worldwide.
  
• Despite the problem globally, a separate report in 2022 found that "cats are either unmanaged or managed using scientifically unsupported and ineffective approaches ... in many jurisdictions around the world."
  

[...] So, what now? (MORE - missing details)

Yesterday I saw the local black and white cat chasing one of 'our' squirrels.
Today B&W was sitting on the wall next to the bird bath - looking like lord of all he surveys.
Tonight .. as CC kindly suggests .. I think the time has come to plan defending our territory.
Vinegar goes down tomorrow .. we'll see how well that works before introducing stronger measures.

Cats don’t last long around here. Last one I saw was moving fast in the field behind the house, about as fast as the coyote who had the wriggling mass in its jaws. People move into the area with cats that run free for only a little while. As coyotes become more urbanized I imagine there will be pressure on the feline population. Either that or an increase in indoor cats. Karma’s a bitch.