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D. Algar - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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effectiveness of dogs for detecting Feral Cat sCats in wheatbelt reserves of western australia
Wildlife Research, 2021Co-Authors: Sue Robinson, Barry G Baker, Steven Candy, Anthony J Friend, Mark Holdsworth, Katrina Jensz, Manda Page, D. AlgarAbstract:Abstract Context Dogs are increasingly being used in conservation work to collect information on species abundance, distribution, occupancy and other biological measures. Monitoring Feral Cats through the use of detection dogs could provide a useful technique to complement existing Feral Cat survey and control methods. Aim To demonstrate and quantify the ability of trained detection dogs to reliably and efficiently detect Feral Cat sCats when present in woodland conservation reserves in the Wheatbelt of Western Australia. Methods Cat sCats were randomly placed into 466 1.5 ha (150 m × 100 m) quadrats in Tutanning Nature Reserve, Western Australia, and the loCation of the sCat was recorded. Quadrats were then independently searched by dogs walking a central transect line and the loCations of all sCats detected were recorded, with the distance from the sCat to the transect subsequently being calculated. Data collected allowed the relationship between distance from the transect and detection probability to be used to assist modelling of detection probabilities. Key results Dogs detected sCats in 213 (55%) of 384 quadrats that were searched using a single transect line method. All indiCations of a find by the detector dogs were associated with a Cat sCat (no false indiCations). Detection probabilities for sCats declined with distance from the transect line and with an increasing age of the sCat. Simulations to investigate management options for Cat control programs quantified effort required to detect Cat sCats under varying densities. Conclusion Dogs were highly efficient at detecting sCats within the woodland environment of the Western Australian wheatbelt. The effort required to detect a sCat was considerably higher when Cat density was low. ImpliCations On the basis of the detection probabilities derived from the present study, trained sCat-detection dogs can be expected to efficiently search woodlands and find Cat sCats by using an effective sweep width of 100 m (50 m either side of a transect) when sCats are fresh. Sweep widths need to be reduced significantly if it is important to loCate sCats that have been exposed to the elements for greater periods of time, or to search habitats where terrain and vegetation cover are more challenging.
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integrating Feral Cat felis Catus control into landscape scale introduced predator management to improve conservation prospects for threatened fauna a case study from the south coast of western australia
Wildlife Research, 2020Co-Authors: Sarah Comer, Cameron Tiller, Lucy Clausen, S Cowen, J Pinder, A Thomas, Allan H Burbidge, D. AlgarAbstract:Abstract Context Feral Cat predation has had a significant impact on native Australian fauna in the past 200 years. In the early 2000s, population monitoring of the western ground parrot showed a dramatic decline from the pre-2000 range, with one of three meta-populations declining to very low levels and a second becoming locally extinct. We review 8 years of integrated introduced predator control, which trialled the incorporation of the Feral Cat bait EradiCat® into existing fox baiting programs. Aims To test the efficacy of integrating Feral Cat control into an existing introduced predator control program in an adaptive management framework conducted in response to the decline of native species. The objective was to protect the remaining western ground parrot populations and other threatened fauna on the south coast of Western Australia. Methods A landscape-scale Feral Cat and fox baiting program was delivered across south coast reserves that were occupied by western ground parrots in the early 2000s. Up to 500 000 ha of national parks and natures reserves were baited per annum. Monitoring was established to evaluate both the efficacy of landscape-scale baiting in management of Feral Cat populations, and the response of several native fauna species, including the western ground parrot, to an integrated introduced predator control program. Key results On average, 28% of radio-collared Feral Cats died from EradiCat® baiting each year, over a 5-year period. The results varied from 0% to 62% between years. Changes in site occupancy by Feral Cats, as measured by detection on camera traps, was also variable, with significant declines detected after baiting in some years and sites. Trends in populations of native fauna, including the western ground parrot and chuditch, showed positive responses to integrated control of foxes and Cats. ImpliCations Landscape-scale baiting of Feral Cats in ecosystems on the south coast of Western Australia had varying success when measured by direct knockdown of Cats and site occupancy as determined by camera trapping; however, native species appeared to respond favourably to integrated predator control. For the protection of native species, we recommend ongoing baiting for both foxes and Feral Cats, complemented by post-bait trapping of Feral Cats. We advoCate monitoring baiting efficacy in a well designed adaptive management framework to deliver long-term recovery of threatened species that have been impacted by Cats.
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Feral Cat eradiCation on Dirk Hartog Island, Western Australia
Biological Invasions, 2020Co-Authors: D. Algar, M. Johnston, C. Tiller, M. Onus, J. Fletcher, G. Desmond, N. Hamilton, P. SpeldewindeAbstract:Feral Cats are known to drive numerous extinctions of endemic species on islands. Predation by Feral Cats also currently threatens many species listed as critically endangered. Island faunas that have evolved in the absence of mammalian predators are particularly susceptible to Cat predation. Dirk Hartog Island is no exception as Cats have caused the local extinction of its once high vertebrate diversity. A programme to reconstruct the native fauna on the island necessitated Feral Cat eradiCation. In this paper we outline the strategy, removal techniques and monitoring methods used in this successful eradiCation of Feral Cats. Globally, the Dirk Hartog project has become the largest successful island Feral Cat eradiCation campaign attempted to date.
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Feral Cat globetrotters genetic traces of historical human mediated dispersal
Ecology and Evolution, 2016Co-Authors: K Koch, D. Algar, Klaus SchwenkAbstract:Endemic species on islands are highly susceptible to local extinction, in particular if they are exposed to invasive species. Invasive predators, such as Feral Cats, have been introduced to islands around the world, causing major losses in local biodiversity. In order to control and manage invasive species successfully, information about source populations and level of gene flow is essential. Here, we investigate the origin of Feral Cats of Hawaiian and Australian islands to verify their European ancestry and a potential pattern of isolation by distance. We analyzed the genetic structure and diversity of Feral Cats from eleven islands as well as samples from Malaysia and Europe using mitochondrial DNA (ND5 and ND6 regions) and microsatellite DNA data. Our results suggest an overall European origin of Hawaiian Cats with no pattern of isolation by distance between Australian, Malaysian, and Hawaiian populations. Instead, we found low levels of genetic differentiation between samples from Tasman Island, Lana'i, Kaho'olawe, Cocos (Keeling) Island, and Asia. As these populations are separated by up to 10,000 kilometers, we assume an extensive passive dispersal event along global maritime trade routes in the beginning of the 19th century, connecting Australian, Asian, and Hawaiian islands. Thus, islands populations, which are characterized by low levels of current gene flow, represent valuable sources of information on historical, human-mediated global dispersal patterns of Feral Cats.
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Feral Cat home range size varies predictably with landscape productivity and population density
Journal of Zoology, 2016Co-Authors: Andrew J. Bengsen, D. Algar, Sarah Comer, Guyanthony Ballard, Tony Buckmaster, Peter J S Fleming, J A Friend, Michael Johnston, Hugh W Mcgregor, Katherine E MosebyAbstract:An understanding of the factors that drive inter-population variability in home-range size is essential for managing the impacts of invasive species with broad global distributions, such as the Feral domestic Cat (Felis Catus). The assumption that home-range sizes scale negatively with landscape productivity is fundamental to many spatial behaviour models, and inter-site variation in landscape productivity has often been invoked to explain the vast differences in Feral Cat home-range sizes among different regions. However, the validity of this explanation has not been tested or described. We used regression models to examine the ability of remotely sensed landscape productivity data, average body weight and population density to explain differences in the size of Feral Cat home ranges estimated across a diverse collection of sites across the globe. As expected for a solitary polygynous carnivore, female Cats occupied smaller home ranges in highly productive sites, and range sizes of male Cats scaled positively with those of females. However, the relationship between range size and productivity broke down at highly seasonal sites. Home-range size also scaled negatively with population density, but there was no clear relationship with average body weight. The relationships we describe should be useful for predicting home-range sizes and for designing effective Feral Cat control and monitoring programmes in many situations. More generally, these results confirm the importance of landscape productivity in shaping the spatial distribution of solitary carnivores, but the nature of the relationship is more compliCated than is often appreciated.
Matthew Gentle - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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field assessment of the risk of Feral Cat baits to nontarget species in eastern australia
Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 2021Co-Authors: Bronwyn A Fancourt, Peter Cremasco, Christine Zirbel, Peter Elsworth, Glen Harry, Matthew GentleAbstract:Feral Cats (Felis Catus) pose a significant threat to wildlife, agriculture, and human health through predation, disease transmission, and competition with native animals. Controlling Feral Cats and their impacts, however, is challenging. New and emerging 1080-based Feral Cat baits have shown promising results in western and central Australia; however, the safety of these new baits for nontarget species in eastern Australia, where many native animals are more sensitive to compound 1080 (sodium fluoroacetate) than their western conspecifics, has not been assessed. We investigated the uptake of 499 toxic EradiCat® baits by nontarget animals across five different eastern Australian environs and the uptake of nontoxic EradiCat and Hisstory® baits at an additional two sites. Using field-based observations of species eating or removing baits, we determined that 13 nontarget species (eight mammals, four birds, and one reptile) were at high risk of individual mortality, with individuals of 11 of those 13 species (seven mammals, four birds) observed consuming enough toxic EradiCat in a single visit to ingest a lethal dose of 1080. Feral Cats (the target species) consumed only 3.1% of monitored baits, which was only 52% of the 31 baits they encountered. We recommend undertaking targeted population monitoring of species identified at high risk of individual mortality, to determine whether EradiCat baits present a population-level risk to these species. Our findings suggest that the small-sized EradiCat baits present a greater risk to nontarget species in eastern Australia than the larger traditional 1080-based meat baits used for the control of wild dogs and foxes. Our study highlights the importance of performing risk assessments for different bait types, even when the same toxin is used, and of performing site-specific nontarget risk assessments of new baits such as EradiCat to assist developing guidelines for their safe and effective use in different environs. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2021;00:1-21. © 2021 State of Queensland. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management © 2021 SETAC.
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measuring evaluating and improving the effectiveness of invasive predator control programs Feral Cat baiting as a case study
Journal of Environmental Management, 2021Co-Authors: Bronwyn A Fancourt, John Augusteyn, Peter Cremasco, Barry Nolan, Samuel Richards, James D M Speed, Cameron Wilson, Matthew GentleAbstract:Reducing the impacts of invasive predators is a key objective for conservation managers, livestock producers and human health agencies globally. The efficacy of invasive predator control programs, however, is highly variable. To improve control efficacy, managers require a fundamental understanding of the factors that contribute to the success or failure of a control program. Using a predator baiting program as a case study, we measured the efficacy of baiting as a control tool to significantly reduce Feral Cat (Felis Catus) populations. We used camera traps and Cat-borne GPS collars to monitor changes in Feral Cat populations at a baited site and an unbaited site, using a Before-After, Control-Impact (BACI) design. We also identified five key elements required for a successful baiting program (bait encounter rate, availability, attractiveness, palatability and lethality) and simultaneously measured these to identify areas for potential improvement. Baiting was ineffective at reducing Feral Cat populations; collared Cat mortality was only 11% (1/9), with camera traps revealing negligible reductions in the number of Cat detection events (9%), naive occupancy (15%), and no significant change in the relative abundance of Feral Cats (F1,54 = 0.8641, P = 0.357). Several factors contributed to the poor control efficacy. Bait encounter rates were low, with Cats active along tracks (where baits were laid) 5 kg) Feral Cat. Our findings suggest that altering bait deployment patterns, increasing bait densities and improving bait palatability could potentially improve the efficacy of baiting programs to reduce Feral Cat populations. Our study provides a framework to measure and evaluate the key elements that contribute to efficacy of pest control programs, and to identify opportunities for improving outcomes of future control programs.
Bronwyn A Fancourt - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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field assessment of the risk of Feral Cat baits to nontarget species in eastern australia
Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 2021Co-Authors: Bronwyn A Fancourt, Peter Cremasco, Christine Zirbel, Peter Elsworth, Glen Harry, Matthew GentleAbstract:Feral Cats (Felis Catus) pose a significant threat to wildlife, agriculture, and human health through predation, disease transmission, and competition with native animals. Controlling Feral Cats and their impacts, however, is challenging. New and emerging 1080-based Feral Cat baits have shown promising results in western and central Australia; however, the safety of these new baits for nontarget species in eastern Australia, where many native animals are more sensitive to compound 1080 (sodium fluoroacetate) than their western conspecifics, has not been assessed. We investigated the uptake of 499 toxic EradiCat® baits by nontarget animals across five different eastern Australian environs and the uptake of nontoxic EradiCat and Hisstory® baits at an additional two sites. Using field-based observations of species eating or removing baits, we determined that 13 nontarget species (eight mammals, four birds, and one reptile) were at high risk of individual mortality, with individuals of 11 of those 13 species (seven mammals, four birds) observed consuming enough toxic EradiCat in a single visit to ingest a lethal dose of 1080. Feral Cats (the target species) consumed only 3.1% of monitored baits, which was only 52% of the 31 baits they encountered. We recommend undertaking targeted population monitoring of species identified at high risk of individual mortality, to determine whether EradiCat baits present a population-level risk to these species. Our findings suggest that the small-sized EradiCat baits present a greater risk to nontarget species in eastern Australia than the larger traditional 1080-based meat baits used for the control of wild dogs and foxes. Our study highlights the importance of performing risk assessments for different bait types, even when the same toxin is used, and of performing site-specific nontarget risk assessments of new baits such as EradiCat to assist developing guidelines for their safe and effective use in different environs. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2021;00:1-21. © 2021 State of Queensland. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management © 2021 SETAC.
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measuring evaluating and improving the effectiveness of invasive predator control programs Feral Cat baiting as a case study
Journal of Environmental Management, 2021Co-Authors: Bronwyn A Fancourt, John Augusteyn, Peter Cremasco, Barry Nolan, Samuel Richards, James D M Speed, Cameron Wilson, Matthew GentleAbstract:Reducing the impacts of invasive predators is a key objective for conservation managers, livestock producers and human health agencies globally. The efficacy of invasive predator control programs, however, is highly variable. To improve control efficacy, managers require a fundamental understanding of the factors that contribute to the success or failure of a control program. Using a predator baiting program as a case study, we measured the efficacy of baiting as a control tool to significantly reduce Feral Cat (Felis Catus) populations. We used camera traps and Cat-borne GPS collars to monitor changes in Feral Cat populations at a baited site and an unbaited site, using a Before-After, Control-Impact (BACI) design. We also identified five key elements required for a successful baiting program (bait encounter rate, availability, attractiveness, palatability and lethality) and simultaneously measured these to identify areas for potential improvement. Baiting was ineffective at reducing Feral Cat populations; collared Cat mortality was only 11% (1/9), with camera traps revealing negligible reductions in the number of Cat detection events (9%), naive occupancy (15%), and no significant change in the relative abundance of Feral Cats (F1,54 = 0.8641, P = 0.357). Several factors contributed to the poor control efficacy. Bait encounter rates were low, with Cats active along tracks (where baits were laid) 5 kg) Feral Cat. Our findings suggest that altering bait deployment patterns, increasing bait densities and improving bait palatability could potentially improve the efficacy of baiting programs to reduce Feral Cat populations. Our study provides a framework to measure and evaluate the key elements that contribute to efficacy of pest control programs, and to identify opportunities for improving outcomes of future control programs.
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evidence of significantly higher island Feral Cat abundance compared with the adjacent mainland
Wildlife Research, 2019Co-Authors: Patrick L Taggart, Andrew J. Bengsen, Bronwyn A Fancourt, John L Read, David Peacock, Patrick Hodgens, Milton M Mcallister, Charles G B CaraguelAbstract:Context Feral Cats (Felis Catus) impact the health and welfare of wildlife, livestock and humans worldwide. They are particularly damaging where they have been introduced into island countries such as Australia and New Zealand, where native prey species evolved without feline predators. Kangaroo Island, in South Australia, is Australia’s third largest island and supports several threatened and endemic species. Cat densities on Kangaroo Island are thought to be greater than those on the adjacent South Australian mainland, based on one Cat density estimate on the island that is higher than most estimates from the mainland. The prevalence of Cat-borne disease in Cats and sheep is also higher on Kangaroo Island than the mainland, suggesting higher Cat densities. A recent continental-scale spatial model of Cat density predicted that Cat density on Kangaroo Island should be about double that of the adjacent mainland. However, although Cats are believed to have severe impacts on some native species on the island, other species that are generally considered vulnerable to Cat predation have relatively secure populations on the island compared with the mainland. Aims The present study aimed to compare Feral Cat abundance between Kangaroo Island and the adjacent South Australian mainland using simultaneous standardised methods. Based on previous findings, we predicted that the relative abundance of Feral Cats on Kangaroo Island would be approximately double that on the South Australian mainland. Methods Standardised camera trap surveys were used to simultaneously estimate the relative abundance of Feral Cats on Kangaroo Island and the adjacent South Australian mainland. Survey data were analysed using the Royle–Nichols abundance-induced heterogeneity model to estimate Feral Cat relative abundance at each site. Key results Cat abundance on the island was estimated to be over 10 times greater than that on the adjacent mainland. Conclusions Consistent with predictions, Cat abundance on the island was greater than on the adjacent mainland. However, the magnitude of this difference was much greater than expected. ImpliCations The findings show that the actual densities of Cats at local sites can vary substantially from predictions generated by continental-scale models. The study also demonstrates the value of estimating abundance or density simultaneously across sites using standardised methods.
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making a killing photographic evidence of predation of a tasmanian pademelon thylogale billardierii by a Feral Cat felis Catus
Australian Mammalogy, 2015Co-Authors: Bronwyn A FancourtAbstract:Feral Cats (Felis Catus) have contributed to the extinction of numerous Australian mammals and are a major threat to many species of conservation significance. Small mammals are considered to be those at greatest risk of Cat predation, with risk typically inferred from dietary studies. However, dietary studies may provide only weak inference as to the risk of Cat predation for some species. The most compelling evidence of predation risk comes from direct observation of killing events; however, such observations are rare and photographic evidence is even rarer. I present photographic evidence of a Feral Cat killing and consuming an adult female Tasmanian pademelon (Thylogale billardierii). This observation provides direct evidence that Feral Cats can kill prey up to 4 kg in body mass, with potential impliCations for the conservation of medium-sized mammals.
Sarah Comer - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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integrating Feral Cat felis Catus control into landscape scale introduced predator management to improve conservation prospects for threatened fauna a case study from the south coast of western australia
Wildlife Research, 2020Co-Authors: Sarah Comer, Cameron Tiller, Lucy Clausen, S Cowen, J Pinder, A Thomas, Allan H Burbidge, D. AlgarAbstract:Abstract Context Feral Cat predation has had a significant impact on native Australian fauna in the past 200 years. In the early 2000s, population monitoring of the western ground parrot showed a dramatic decline from the pre-2000 range, with one of three meta-populations declining to very low levels and a second becoming locally extinct. We review 8 years of integrated introduced predator control, which trialled the incorporation of the Feral Cat bait EradiCat® into existing fox baiting programs. Aims To test the efficacy of integrating Feral Cat control into an existing introduced predator control program in an adaptive management framework conducted in response to the decline of native species. The objective was to protect the remaining western ground parrot populations and other threatened fauna on the south coast of Western Australia. Methods A landscape-scale Feral Cat and fox baiting program was delivered across south coast reserves that were occupied by western ground parrots in the early 2000s. Up to 500 000 ha of national parks and natures reserves were baited per annum. Monitoring was established to evaluate both the efficacy of landscape-scale baiting in management of Feral Cat populations, and the response of several native fauna species, including the western ground parrot, to an integrated introduced predator control program. Key results On average, 28% of radio-collared Feral Cats died from EradiCat® baiting each year, over a 5-year period. The results varied from 0% to 62% between years. Changes in site occupancy by Feral Cats, as measured by detection on camera traps, was also variable, with significant declines detected after baiting in some years and sites. Trends in populations of native fauna, including the western ground parrot and chuditch, showed positive responses to integrated control of foxes and Cats. ImpliCations Landscape-scale baiting of Feral Cats in ecosystems on the south coast of Western Australia had varying success when measured by direct knockdown of Cats and site occupancy as determined by camera trapping; however, native species appeared to respond favourably to integrated predator control. For the protection of native species, we recommend ongoing baiting for both foxes and Feral Cats, complemented by post-bait trapping of Feral Cats. We advoCate monitoring baiting efficacy in a well designed adaptive management framework to deliver long-term recovery of threatened species that have been impacted by Cats.
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Evaluating the efficacy of a landscape scale Feral Cat control program using camera traps and occupancy models
Scientific Reports, 2018Co-Authors: Sarah Comer, Peter Speldewinde, Cameron Tiller, Lucy Clausen, Jeff Pinder, Saul Cowen, Dave AlgarAbstract:The impact of introduced predators is a major factor limiting survivorship and recruitment of many native Australian species. In particular, the Feral Cat and red fox have been impliCated in range reductions and population declines of many conservation dependent species across Australia, including ground-nesting birds and small to medium-sized mammals. The impact of predation by Feral Cats since their introduction some 200 years ago has altered the structure of native fauna communities and led to the development of landscape-scale threat abatement via baiting programs with the Feral Cat bait, EradiCat. Demonstrating the effectiveness of broad-scale programs is essential for managers to fine tune delivery and timing of baiting. Efficacy of Feral Cat baiting at the Fortescue Marsh in the Pilbara, Western Australia was tested using camera traps and occupancy models. There was a significant decrease in probability of site occupancy in baited sites in each of the five years of this study, demonstrating both the effectiveness of aerial baiting for landscape-scale removal of Feral Cats, and the validity of camera trap monitoring techniques for detecting changes in Feral Cat occupancy during a five-year baiting program.
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Feral Cat home range size varies predictably with landscape productivity and population density
Journal of Zoology, 2016Co-Authors: Andrew J. Bengsen, D. Algar, Sarah Comer, Guyanthony Ballard, Tony Buckmaster, Peter J S Fleming, J A Friend, Michael Johnston, Hugh W Mcgregor, Katherine E MosebyAbstract:An understanding of the factors that drive inter-population variability in home-range size is essential for managing the impacts of invasive species with broad global distributions, such as the Feral domestic Cat (Felis Catus). The assumption that home-range sizes scale negatively with landscape productivity is fundamental to many spatial behaviour models, and inter-site variation in landscape productivity has often been invoked to explain the vast differences in Feral Cat home-range sizes among different regions. However, the validity of this explanation has not been tested or described. We used regression models to examine the ability of remotely sensed landscape productivity data, average body weight and population density to explain differences in the size of Feral Cat home ranges estimated across a diverse collection of sites across the globe. As expected for a solitary polygynous carnivore, female Cats occupied smaller home ranges in highly productive sites, and range sizes of male Cats scaled positively with those of females. However, the relationship between range size and productivity broke down at highly seasonal sites. Home-range size also scaled negatively with population density, but there was no clear relationship with average body weight. The relationships we describe should be useful for predicting home-range sizes and for designing effective Feral Cat control and monitoring programmes in many situations. More generally, these results confirm the importance of landscape productivity in shaping the spatial distribution of solitary carnivores, but the nature of the relationship is more compliCated than is often appreciated.
Chris R Dickman - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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uptake of eradiCat Feral Cat baits by non target species on kangaroo island
Wildlife Research, 2020Co-Authors: Rosemary Hohnen, Brett P Murphy, Chris R Dickman, Sarah Legge, John C Z WoinarskiAbstract:Abstract Context Predation by Feral Cats (Felis Catus) threatens a range of vertebrate species across Australia, and Cat-free islands increasingly act as safe havens for biodiversity. A Feral Cat eradiCation program has begun on Kangaroo Island (4405 km2) in South Australia, and poison baiting is likely to be one of the main methods used. Aims Here, we trial a non-toxic version of a Cat bait, ‘EradiCat’, on western Kangaroo Island, to examine its potential impact on non-target species. Methods Non-toxic baits containing the biomarker Rhodamine B were deployed across four sites in early August and late November in 2018, with bait take and consumption assessed both by remote cameras and by the presence of Rhodamine B in mammalian whisker samples taken post-baiting. Key results Cats encountered baits on very few occasions and took a bait on only one occasion in August ( 60% of all baits laid was taken by either the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), bush rat (Rattus fuscipes) or Australian raven (Corvus coronoides). In November, Rosenberg’s goanna (Varanus rosenbergi) and southern brown bandicoot (south-eastern subspecies; Isoodon obesulus obesulus), listed nationally as Endangered, also took baits (3% and 1% respectively). The Kangaroo Island dunnart (Sminthopsis fuliginosus aitkeni), listed nationally as endangered, approached a bait on only one occasion, but did not consume it. Evidence of bait consumption was visible in the whiskers of captured common brushtail possums (100% of post-baiting captured individuals in August, 80% in November), bush rats (59% in August and 50% in November), house mice (Mus musculus) (45% in November) and western pygmy-possums (Cercartetus concinnus) (33% in November). Conclusions Although Feral Cat baiting has the potential to significantly benefit wildlife on Kangaroo Island, impacts on non-target species (particularly the bush rat and common brushtail possum) may be high. ImpliCations Alternative Cat baits, such as those containing a toxin to which native species have a higher tolerance or that are less readily consumed by native wildlife, will be more appropriate.
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a continental scale analysis of Feral Cat diet in australia
Journal of Biogeography, 2015Co-Authors: Tim S Doherty, Russell Palmer, D. Algar, Pip Masters, Robert A Davis, Eddie J B Van Etten, Neil Collier, Chris R Dickman, Glenn A Edwards, Sue RobinsonAbstract:Aim Reducing the impacts of Feral Cats (Felis Catus) is a priority for conservation managers across the globe, and success in achieving this aim requires a detailed understanding of the species’ ecology across a broad spectrum of climatic and environmental conditions. We reviewed the diet of the Feral Cat across Australia and on Australian territorial islands, seeking to identify biogeographical patterns in dietary composition and diversity, and use the results to consider how Feral Cats may best be managed. LoCation Australia and its territorial islands. Methods Using 49 published and unpublished data sets, we modelled trophic diversity and the consumption of eight food groups against latitude, longitude, mean temperature, precipitation, environmental productivity and climate-habitat regions. Results We recorded 400 vertebrate species that Feral Cats feed on or kill in Australia, including 28 IUCN Red List species. We found evidence of continental-scale prey-switching from rabbits to small mammals, previously recorded only at the local scale. The consumption of arthropods, reptiles, rabbits, rodents and medium-sized native mammals varied with different combinations of latitude, longitude, mean annual precipitation, temperature and environmental productivity. The frequency of rodents and dasyurids in Cats’ diets increased as rabbit consumption decreased. Main conclusions The Feral Cat is an opportunistic, generalist carnivore that consumes a diverse suite of vertebrate prey across Australia. It uses a facultative feeding strategy, feeding mainly on rabbits when they are available, but switching to other food groups when they are not. Control programmes aimed at culling rabbits could potentially decrease the availability of a preferred food source for Cats and then lead to greater predation pressure on native mammals. The interplay between Cat diet and prey species diversity at a continental scale is complex, and thus Cat management is likely to be necessary and most effective at the local landscape level.
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article a continental scale analysis of Feral Cat diet in australia
2015Co-Authors: Dave Algar, Robert A Davis, Eddie J B Van Etten, Neil Collier, Chris R Dickman, Sue Robinson, Glenn P Edwards, Tim S DohertyAbstract:Aim Reducing the impacts of Feral Cats (Felis Catus) is a priority for conservation managers across the globe, and success in achieving this aim requires a detailed understanding of the species’ ecology across a broad spectrum of climatic and environmental conditions. We reviewed the diet of the Feral Cat across Australia and on Australian territorial islands, seeking to identify biogeographical patterns in dietary composition and diversity, and use the results to consider how Feral Cats may best be managed. LoCation Australia and its territorial islands. Methods Using 49 published and unpublished data sets, we modelled trophic diversity and the consumption of eight food groups against latitude, longitude, mean temperature, precipitation, environmental productivity and climate-habitat regions. Results We recorded 400 vertebrate species that Feral Cats feed on or kill in Australia, including 28 IUCN Red List species. We found evidence of continental-scale prey-switching from rabbits to small mammals, previously recorded only at the local scale. The consumption of arthropods, reptiles, rabbits, rodents and medium-sized native mammals varied with different combinations of latitude, longitude, mean annual precipitation, temperature and environmental productivity. The frequency of rodents and dasyurids in Cats’ diets increased as rabbit consumption decreased. Main conclusions The Feral Cat is an opportunistic, generalist carnivore that consumes a diverse suite of vertebrate prey across Australia. It uses a facultative feeding strategy, feeding mainly on rabbits when they are available, but switching to other food groups when they are not. Control programmes aimed at culling rabbits could potentially decrease the availability of a preferred food source for Cats and then lead to greater predation pressure on native mammals. The interplay between Cat diet and prey species diversity at a continental scale is complex, and thus Cat management is likely to be necessary and most effective at the local landscape level.
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patterns of detection and capture are associated with cohabiting predators and prey
PLOS ONE, 2013Co-Authors: Billie T Lazenby, Chris R DickmanAbstract:Avoidance behaviour can play an important role in structuring ecosystems but can be difficult to uncover and quantify. Remote cameras have great but as yet unrealized potential to uncover patterns arising from predatory, competitive or other interactions that structure animal communities by detecting species that are active at the same sites and recording their behaviours and times of activity. Here, we use multi-season, two-species occupancy models to test for evidence of interactions between introduced (Feral Cat Felis Catus) and native predator (Tasmanian devil Sarcophilus harrisii) and predator and small mammal (swamp rat Rattus lutreolus velutinus) combinations at baited camera sites in the cool temperate forests of southern Tasmania. In addition, we investigate the capture rates of swamp rats in traps scented with Feral Cat and devil faecal odours. We observed that one species could reduce the probability of detecting another at a camera site. In particular, Feral Cats were detected less frequently at camera sites occupied by devils, whereas patterns of swamp rat detection associated with devils or Feral Cats varied with study site. Captures of swamp rats were not associated with odours on traps, although fewer captures tended to occur in traps scented with the faecal odour of Feral Cats. The observation that a native carnivorous marsupial, the Tasmanian devil, can suppress the detectability of an introduced eutherian predator, the Feral Cat, is consistent with a dominant predator – mesopredator relationship. Such a relationship has important impliCations for the interaction between Feral Cats and the lower trophic guilds that form their prey, especially if Cat activity increases in places where devil populations are declining. More generally, population estimates derived from devices such as remote cameras need to acknowledge the potential for one species to change the detectability of another, and incorporate this in assessments of numbers and survival.