Feral cat
895672
225832060
2008-07-15T16:35:28Z
134.11.64.82
/* Effects on wildlife */
{{Refimprove|date=March 2008}}
{{Copyedit|date=April 2008}}
{{Mergefrom|Feral cat colony|date=March 2008}}
{{redirect|Stray cat|the band|Stray Cats}}
[[Image:Wild Cat on Serifos - Cropped.jpg|thumb|right|A feral cat in [[Serifos]], [[Greece]].]]
A '''feral cat''' (or '''stray cat''', '''alley cat''') is a [[cat]] which has been separated from domestication, whether through abandonment, loss, or running away, and becomes wild. The term also refers to descendants of such cats, but not to [[wild cats]], whose ancestors were never domesticated.
In [[Australia]] the term feral cat refers to cats living and breeding entirely in the wild. Significant populations of wildlife in Australia, including [[marsupial]]s, [[reptile]]s, and [[bird]]s, poorly [[Adaptation|adapted]] to this efficient predator, have allowed the establishment of stable populations across most of the country.
Adult feral cats, that were never socialized with humans, can rarely be socialized. Feral kittens can sometimes be socialized to live with humans. The ideal time for capture is between six and eight weeks old. Taming at this age may take only a couple of days. Older kittens can be tamed - but it takes longer. Also, an older kitten may bond only with the person working with them, which can make adoption difficult, but not impossible.
Feral cats may live alone but are usually found in large groups called [[Feral cat colony|feral colonies]]. The [[Life expectancy|average life span]] of a feral cat that survives beyond [[kitten]]hood is usually cited as being less than two years,<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.crittercontrol.com/?doc=resources_af_cats |title=CritterControl - Cat animal facts |accessdate= 2007-04-11}}</ref> while a domestic housecat lives an average of 12 to 16 years. <!--12-14 in UK 16+ in USA but stats are incomplete --> However, feral cats aged 19 (Cat Action Trust) and 26 (Cats Protection) have been reported where food and shelter are available.
[[City|Cities]] and [[North America]] are not native environments for cats. The domestic cat comes from [[temperate]] or hot, dry [[climate]]s and was distributed throughout the world by [[human]]s. Cats are extremely adaptable, and feral felines have been found in conditions of extreme cold and heat. They are more susceptible to cold, damp conditions than to cold alone. In addition, they are vulnerable to predators such as [[dog]]s, [[wolf|wolves]], [[bear]]s, [[raccoon]]s, [[cougar]]s, [[bobcat]]s, [[foxes]], [[birds of prey]], and [[coyote]]s.
Feral cats have found a place in the popular imagination, perhaps due to the cat's reputation for being independent minded. For instance the famous television cartoon character ''[[Top Cat]]'', a wily "alley cat" would always manage to get the better of the good-natured policeman, Officer Dibble. [[T. S. Eliot]]'s [[Jellicle|Jellicle Cats]], who are now known throughout the world through [[Andrew Lloyd-Webber]]'s hit musical [[Cats (musical)|''Cats'']], were themselves inspired by a colony of black and white feral cats in [[London]], England.{{Fact|date=February 2008}}
==Effects on wildlife==
{{POV-section|date=December 2007}}
Feral cats are often apex predators in local ecosystems, and their predation on small mammals and birds, particularly endangered ground-nesting birds, is of increasing concern. There is little doubt that feral cats are extremely effective at controlling or even eradicating small animal populations, and some cite {{Fact|date=January 2008}} the utility of cats in controlling populations of [[vermin]]ous [[rodent]] species. This is one of the major justifications for the keeping of [[farm cat]]s. However, conservationists argue that feral cats contribute greatly to the killing of songbirds and other [[Endangered species|endangered]] birds, with estimates that bird loss is at 100 million a year due to predation. However, it can be argued that in the United states, the resurgence of other small predators such as the [[gray fox]] (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), [[fisher (animal)|fisher]] or pekan (''Martes pennanti''), [[coyote]] (''Canis latrans''), and [[bobcat]] (''Lynx rufus'') is a contributing factor in conserved bird deaths.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
Feral cats in Australia [[prey]] on a variety of wildlife. In arid and semi-arid environments [[introduced species|introduced]] [[European Rabbit|European rabbit]]s and [[House Mouse|house mice]] are the dominant part of the diet; in forests and urbanised areas native [[marsupial]] prey forms the larger part of the diet (based on 22 studies summarised in Dickman 1996). In arid environments where rabbits do not occur native rodents are taken. Birds form a smaller part of the diet, mostly in forests and urbanised areas, reptiles also form just a small part of the diet. It has been suggested that feral cats have been present in [[Australia]] since before [[European ethnic groups|European]] settlement, and may have arrived with [[Netherlands|Dutch]] [[shipwreck]]s in the 17th century, or even prior to that; arriving from present-day [[Indonesia]] with [[Macassan contact with Australia|Macassan]] fisherman and [[trepang]]ers who frequented Australia's shores. However historical records do not suggest this, instead dating the arrival of feral cats at around 1824.<ref name="Abbot"> Abbot, I. (2002) "Origin and spread of the cat, Felis catus, on mainland Australia, with a discussion of the magnitude of its early impact on native fauna" ''Wildlife Research'' '''29'''(1): 51-74 [http://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/WR01011.htm abstract] </ref> Intentional releases were made in the late 19th century to control mice, rabbits and rats. Cats had colonised their present range in Australia by 1890. Evidence for early predation by cats having caused major and widespread declines in native fauna is circumstantial and anecdotal and its credibility and significance is debated (Abbot 2002, Dickman 1996).
Numerous Australian environmentalists and conservationists claim that the feral cat has been an ecological disaster in Australia, inhabiting most ecosystems except dense [[rainforest]], and being implicated in the [[extinction]] of several [[marsupial]] and [[placental]] mammal [[species]] (Robley ''et al'' 2004). Scientific evidence has been hard to come by to support this view and some researchers disagree with it (Abbot 2002). Sound evidence that feral cats exert a significant effect on native wildlife throughout the mainland is lacking (Dickman 1996; Jones 1989; Wilson et al. 1992). Difficulties in separating the effects of cats from that of [[fox]]es (also introduced) and environmental effects have hindered research into this. Cats have co-existed with all mammal species in Tasmania for nearly 200 years.<ref name="Abbot" /> The Western Shield program in Western Australia, involving broad-scale poisoning of foxes, has resulted in rapid recoveries of many species of native mammals in spite of the presence of feral cats throughout the baited area.<ref name="Abbot" /> However in 2005 a study was published which for the first time found proof of feral cats causing declines in native mammals (Risbey ''et al'' 2005). an [[experiment]] conducted in [[Heirisson Prong]] compared small mammal populations in areas cleared of both foxes and cats, of foxes only, and a control plot. Researchers found that mammal populations were lower in areas cleared of foxes only and in the control plots.
Cats may also play a further role in Australia's human altered ecosystems; with foxes they may be controlling introduced [[rabbit]]s, particularly in arid areas, which themselves cause ecological damage (Robley ''et al'' 2004). Cats are not believed to have been a factor in the extinction of the only mainland [[bird]] species to be lost since European settlement, the [[Paradise Parrot]]; their role in the loss of rare species on [[Australasia]]n islands, however, has been significant.
Australian Folklore holds that some feral cats in Australia have grown so large as to cause inexperienced observers to claim sightings of other species such as [[Puma]] etc. This folklore is however being shown to be more fact than fiction, with the recent shooting of an enormous Feline,<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.wherelightmeetsdark.com/index.php?module=wiki&page=EngelGippslandBigCat |title=Engel Gippsland big cat |accessdate= 2008-05-02}}</ref> in the [[Gippsland]] area of [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], subsequent DNA test showed the feline to be ''[[Felis silvestris catus]]''.<ref>[http://scienceblogs.com/tetrapodzoology/2007/03/australias_new_feral_mega_cats.php#more "Feral Mega Cats"]</ref> Subsequent news stories of large Feral Cats being sighted is almost monthly in Australia and the evidence is very good to suggest a breeding population of these enormous Felines in the south-eastern states of Victoria and [[New South Wales]].<ref>[http://www.strangenation.com.au/Articles/paulclacher.htm The Big Cat Files]</ref>
===Feral cats and island restoration===
Feral cats [[introduced species|introduced]] to islands with [[island tameness|ecologically naive]] fauna - that is, species that have not evolved or have lost predator responses for dealing with cats (Moors & Atkinson 1984) - have had a devastating impact on these islands' [[biodiversity]]. They have been implicated in the extinction of several species and local extinctions, such as the [[huita]]s from the [[Caribbean]], the [[Guadalupe Storm-petrel]] from [[Pacific]] [[Mexico]], the [[Stephens Island Wren]]; in a statistical study they were significantly complicit in the extinction of 40% of the species studied.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/02/magazine/02cats-v--birds-t.html?em&ex=1196830800&en=4328122ab745ee4d&ei=5087%0A Kill the Cat That Kills the Bird? - New York Times<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Moors and Atkinson wrote, in 1984, "No other alien predator has had such a universally damaging effect."
Feral cats continue to have a devastating impact on island ecosystems. Indeed, a ranger within a Hawaiian Island Wildlife Sanctuary witnessed a single feral cat kill 33 ground-nesting sea birds in a single incident. As well, he notes that cats killed 45 chicks out of 75 in one bird colony.<ref>[http://www.honoluluweekly.com/archives/coverstory%202001/02-21-01%20Cats/02-21-01%20Cats.html eral cats provoke pity in the city ... and eradication in bird land]</ref>
Given the damage they cause, many conservationists working in the field of [[island restoration]] (literally restoring damaged islands through removal of introduced species and replanting and reintroducing native species) have worked to remove feral cats. As of 2004, 48 islands have had their feral cat populations removed, including [[New Zealand]]'s network of offshore island bird reserves (Nogales ''et al'', 2004), and Australia's [[Macquarie Island]]. Larger projects have also been undertaken, including their complete removal from [[Ascension Island]]. The cats, introduced in the 19th century, caused a collapse in populations of nesting [[seabird]]s. The project to remove them from the island began in 2002, and the island was cleared of cats by 2004. Since then seven species of seabird which had not nested on the island for a hundred years have returned.[http://www.birdlife.org/news/news/2005/07/ascension.html].
Feral cats, along with rabbits, some sea birds and sheep, form the entire large animal population of the remote [[Kerguelen Islands]] in the southern [[Indian Ocean]].
==== Unintended consequences ====
In other instances the removal of cats has had [[unintended consequence]]s, such as on [[Macquarie Island]] where the removal of cats caused an explosion in the number of rabbits and rats which have also harmed native seabirds.<ref>[http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/up-against-rats-rabbits-and-costs/2007/04/11/1175971183257.html?page=fullpage The Sydney Morning Herald - Up against rats, rabbits and costs]</ref><ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200607/s1687413.htm ABC News online - Fears for sub-antarctic island plagued by rabbits]</ref> The removal of the rats and rabbits is scheduled for 2007 and is expected to take up to seven years.<ref>[http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/macquarie/rabbitsfaq.html Parks and Wildlife Service, Tasmania - Plan for the Eradication of Rabbits and Rodents on Macquarie Island]</ref>
==Population control==
In the United States, there is debate about how to deal with feral cat populations - many municipalities make it legal to kill them and classify them as vermin or pests. Some {{Who|date=February 2007}} advocate culling feral cat populations by [[hunting]], arguing that it is the most cost-effective method of [[population control]]. However, a proposal in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Wisconsin]] to legalize the hunting of feral cats in an attempt to reduce their population (April 2005) was blocked by the state's lawmakers. [[South Dakota]] and [[Minnesota]] allow wild cats to be shot. The U.S. spends over $50 million a year to shelter some of these cats.{{Fact|date=July 2007}}
It is true, however that baits have been used that include a plant that is deadly to introduced species, but harmless to natives
[[Trap-Neuter-Return]] (TNR) programs are facilitated by many volunteers and organizations in the United States. These organizations trap feral cats, [[Sterilization (surgical procedure)|sterilize]] them through [[neutering]] before releasing them. Variations of the program may include [[inoculation]] against [[rabies]] and other viruses and sometimes long-lasting [[flea treatment]]s. Frequently, attending [[veterinarian]]s cut the tip off one [[ear]] during spay/neuter surgery to mark the individual as being previously caught. Volunteers often continue to feed and give care to these cats throughout their lives. Many animal care experts believe that it is prohibitively difficult if not often impossible to domesticate and adopt a feral cat unless it is trapped and socialized before six weeks of age. However there is some evidence that many people have adopted and domesticated adult feral cats successfully. Also, some feral cat organizations offer techniques to do this.<ref>[http://www.forgottenfelines.com/new/pages/info/tame.html Taming Feral Cats and Kittens] Forgotten Felines</ref>
In Australia, control programs are difficult to devise due to the [[nocturnal animal|nocturnal]] and [[solitary]] nature of the feral cats, broad distribution in the landscape and continuous additions to the population from abandoned domestic cats. Due to the danger posed to humans handling the animal, captured feral cats are almost always [[Pest control|killed]]. Although trap neuter and return programs such as those in the United States are not prevalent in Australia, they are now being introduced in some urban and suburban areas such as [[Adelaide]]. More recently, such programs have been introduced in [[Sydney]] by the "World League for Protection of Animals". Feral cats can also be controlled by larger native predators like [[coyote]]s or [[dingo|dingoes]] because cats are too small to defend themselves against the teeth and claws of the larger predators.
==Zoonotic risk==
There is increasing concern about the role feral cat colonies play as a vector of disease, particularly [[toxoplasmosis]], [[giardiasis]], [[camplylobacter]], and other diseases and parasites that can infect both domestic cats and humans.<ref>[http://cals.arizona.edu/urbanipm/mammals/feralcats.html Urban Integrated Pest Management: Feral Cats]</ref> Cats are the primary reservoir of [[toxoplasmosis]].<ref>[http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures/toxo.html Toxoplasmosis in Cats]</ref> Indeed, there has recently been a major crash in [[sea otter]] populations on the California coast -- these otters are often found to have [[toxoplasmosis]] infections, and although researchers say that "there is no direct evidence that cats or their feces have a part in spreading the single-celled parasite that causes the disease in shellfish- eating otters", they speculate that infected fecal waste from feral cats could enter local watersheds due to [[surface runoff]] or domestic cat feces through the sewage system.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2002/07/04/BA178597.DTL&type=science Cat waste may cause sea otters' infection]</ref><ref>[http://surfermag.com/features/oneworld/otter/index.html Otterly Kelpless]</ref>
==Feral cats in other countries==
===Rome===
[[Rome]], [[Italy]] is perhaps the city with the largest feral cat population in the world; its population has been estimated to be between 250,000 and 350,000, organized in about 2,000 colonies, some of them living in famous ancient places such as the [[Colosseum]].[http://www.romancats.de/index_eng.php] Some historians believe the Romans' affection for cats dates from the Roman Empire's conquest of Egypt, where royalty kept cats. Others believe that Rome was spared from devastating outbreaks of the [[bubonic plague]] by the city's feral cat population, which kept Rome's rat population low thus reducing key plague carrying vector. Whatever the case, Rome's affection for stray felines remains strong.
===Canada's Parliament===
{{main|Canadian Parliamentary Cats}}
For many years (tradition associates them with a British garrison of the 1850s), a feral cat colony has existed on Canada's [[Parliament Hill]] in [[Ottawa]]. In recent years, living structures have been built for them, and they are fed by a volunteer who is given a stipend by the House of Commons. Veterinary services are donated by doctors in the city, and most of the cats are sterilized. At any given time, about fifteen cats live in the colony.
The present Canadian Prime Minister, [[Stephen Harper]], is a cat fan and takes feral kittens into his home to socialize them before they are put up for adoption in Ottawa's shelters. Visitors to his official residence can expect to be asked if they have room in their homes for a cat.
===Crete===
On the island of [[Crete]], in [[Greece]], there are also many feral cats. In fact, there is a charity to help them, [[Cretan Cat Care]] (CCC).
===Philippines===
[[Image:Stray Catz.JPG|Feral Cat at a nativity Scene or [[Belen]] in [[Angeles City]], [[Philippines]]|right|thumb|300px]]
They are also known as "Pusang Kalye" (or Street Cat), but don't share the same treatment as the [[Askal]] or Stray Dog.
==Footnotes==
{{reflist}}
==Further reading==
* Tabor, Roger, Arrow Books (1983). ''The Wild Life of the Domestic Cat.'' ISBN 0-09-931210-7
* Moors, P.J.; Atkinson, I.A.E. (1984). "Predation on seabirds by introduced animals, and factors affecting its severity.". In ''Status and Conservation of the World's Seabirds''. Cambridge: ICBP. ISBN 0-946888-03-5.
* Nogales, Manuel ''et al'' (2004). [http://www.issg.org/database/species/reference_files/felcat/Nogales%20et%20al.%202004.pdf "A review of feral cat eradication on islands"]. ''Conservation Biology''. '''18'''(2): 310-319.
* Risbey, Danielle A. ; Calver, Michael C. ; Short, Jeff ; Bradley J. Stuart and Ian W. Wright (2005) [http://publish.csiro.au/nid/144/paper/WR98092.htm The impact of cats and foxes on the small vertebrate fauna of Heirisson Prong, Western Australia. II. A field experiment] ''Wildlife Research'' '''27'''(3): 223-235
* Robley, A., Reddiex, B., Arthur T., Pech R., and Forsyth, D., (2004). "Interactions between feral cats, foxes, native carnivores, and rabbits in Australia". Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne.
* Dickman, C. (1996) [http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/publications/cat-impacts/pubs/impacts-feral-cats.pdf "Overview of the Impact of Feral Cats on Australian Fauna"] Australian Nature Conservation Agency ISBN 0-642-21379-8
==External links==
{{commonscat-inline}}
* [http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/feral_cats/feral_cat_resources.html Feral cat resources] at the [[Humane Society of the United States]]
* [http://www.alleycat.org/resources.html Resource center] at Alley Cat Allies
* [http://members.aol.com/catsferal/pubs.html Articles on the feral cats in Portsmouth Naval Yard]
* [http://piccat.com/pictures/tag/1/stray_cat.html Pictures of stray cats]
<!-- move into references
* [http://www.wildlife.org/policy/TWS_testimony_feral_cats.pdf The Wildlife Society's testimonial on feral cats]
-->
{{Cat nav}}
[[Category:Cat types]]
[[Category:Invasive animal species]]
[[fr:Chat haret]]
[[he:חתול רחוב]]
[[nl:Verwilderde kat]]
[[ja:野良猫]]
[[zh:流浪貓]]