The collar that can save birds ...
http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2015/12/accessories-for-your-murderous-pet/419601/
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Interesting post WD.
Couldn't believe this statistic, " In the U.S there are about 84 million pet cats, and around 46 million of them are allowed to roam outside. An estimated 30-80 million more live as strays ".
Samford Valley Qld.
That's certainly catastrophic, Reflex.
Yes staggering numbers Reflex. I thought it was a bit of good thinking to make the cat more visible to the birds excellent eyesight. The studies cited indicate it causes a significant reduction in number of birds killed. Only a drop in the bucket though considering the numbers of feral cats which do much of the killing.
I'm always astonished that cat owners actually think it's ok to let their animals roam unchecked.
As as a dog owner I am subjected to numerous regulations about where I can/not let my dog run/play/investigate/explore off lead but cats just seem to have carte blanche.
I live in an area with koalas & so we dog owners are continually reminded to make sure our dogs are properly restrained,yarded and do not have any opportunity to hassle koalas when they are on the ground, yet cats just roam as free as their owners let them.
Family member had cats & in my experience,as a rather rare responsible cat owner, she had an outdoor run accessed by a chute from the house.I thnk this should be mandatory.
I have heard that tinsel on a cat's collar is a good idea as while the cat can creep stealthily enough to still the noise of several bells the tinsel flashes a warning whenever it catches the light. Not sure how effective it is but hells bells anything to save our wildlife from cats must be worth a shot.
i reckon cats would have less ecological impact in north america as the birdlife there coevolved with a various native felids
Your comment interests me as it made me think about the entire cat family. I understand what you mean about the co-evolving in north america.
But that's the point really, here in Aus cats are introduced
on the other hand there is an alternate train of thought whereby cats in australia have merely filled the niche previously occupied by native predators such as quolls, which have incidentally been extirpated in many regions...
it's hard to conclusively demonstrate the decline of species to one causal agent (and it's seldom the case given the multifaceted attack launched on our wildlife, though i suppose you could reduce it to 'human activity' -directly and indirectly)
I doubt that all those feral felines infesting our great nation would have an impact on our wildlife equal to or less than equal to the impact of native predators such as quolls, even in the heyday of the native predators. For what it's worth I think we should be aiming for the re-introduction of the native predators & the elimination of the feral felines.
I read a statistic some time ago and all cats, not just the ferals kill well over 1,000,000 native birds and animals a day here in Oz...I put a note in all my neighbours' letter boxes telling them that there were cats killing my birds and others on my property...The note suggested they keep their cats on their own prooperty, I didn't want them on mine...I also said that I was going to set traps so be warned. I hired a trap from the local council and trapped a few cats and took them to Animal Welfare...I hate the darn things...watching a well fed cat play with and torture a beautiful bird to death is not my idea of what a family pet is all about...
Well done. I bought a cat trap, but so far all I have caught in it have been a couple of magpies and my dog.
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
An excellent approach, SX202, & one I've been advocating for some time. You are contributing to a non-cat culture in Australia & for this you are to be commended. An Australian of the Year citation wouldn't go astray, unlike many cats.
Since I spoke with my relatively new neighbours about their cat horde I haven't seen any cats. Hopefully, there's a direct connection between the two. The gradual recovery in Superb Fairy-wren numbers supports the notion that there has been a decline in felines & I can tentatively, at least, thank my neighbours for their respect of the local wildlife.