scholarly journals Long-Distance Movements of Feral Cats in Semi-Arid South Australia and Implications for Conservation Management

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 3125
Author(s):  
Jeroen Jansen ◽  
Hugh McGregor ◽  
Geoff Axford ◽  
Abbey T. Dean ◽  
Sebastien Comte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Feral Cats ◽  
Control Programs ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Semi Arid

Movements that extend beyond the usual space use of an animal have been documented in a range of species and are particularly prevalent in arid areas. We present long-distance movement data on five feral cats (Felis catus) GPS/VHF-collared during two different research projects in arid and semi-arid Australia. We compare these movements with data from other feral cat studies. Over a study period of three months in the Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park, 4 out of 19 collared cats moved to sites that were 31, 41, 53 and 86 km away. Three of the cats were males, one female; their weight was between 2.1 and 4.1 kg. Two of the cats returned to the area of capture after three and six weeks. During the other study at Arid Recovery, one collared male cat (2.5 kg) was relocated after two years at a distance of 369 km from the area of collar deployment to the relocation area. The movements occurred following three years of record low rainfall. Our results build on the knowledge base of long-distance movements of feral cats reported at arid study sites and support the assertion that landscape-scale cat control programs in arid and semi-arid areas need to be of a sufficiently large scale to avoid rapid reinvasion and to effectively reduce cat density. Locally, cat control strategies need to be adjusted to improve coverage of areas highly used by cats to increase the efficiency of control operations.

Edge effects created by fenced conservation reserves benefit an invasive mesopredator

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (8) ◽  
pp. 677
Author(s):  
Hugh McGregor ◽  
John Read ◽  
Christopher N. Johnson ◽  
Sarah Legge ◽  
Brydie Hill ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Prey Availability ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Gps Tracking ◽  
Source Population ◽  
Detection Rates ◽  
Feral Cats ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Invasive Predators ◽  
Surrounding Landscape

Abstract ContextFenced reserves from which invasive predators are removed are increasingly used as a conservation management tool, because they provide safe havens for susceptible threatened species, and create dense populations of native wildlife that could act as a source population for recolonising the surrounding landscape. However, the latter effect might also act as a food source, and promote high densities of invasive predators on the edges of such reserves. AimsOur study aimed to determine whether activity of the feral cat is greater around the edges of a fenced conservation reserve, Arid Recovery, in northern South Australia. This reserve has abundant native rodents that move through the fence into the surrounding landscape. MethodsWe investigated (1) whether feral cats were increasingly likely to be detected on track transects closer to the fence over time as populations of native rodents increased inside the reserve, (2) whether native rodents were more likely to be found in the stomachs of cats caught close to the reserve edge, and (3) whether individual cats selectively hunted on the reserve fence compared with two other similar fences, on the basis of GPS movement data. Key resultsWe found that (1) detection rates of feral cats on the edges of a fenced reserve increased through time as populations of native rodents increased inside the reserve, (2) native rodents were far more likely to be found in the stomach of cats collected at the reserve edge than in the stomachs of cats far from the reserve edge, and (3) GPS tracking of cat movements showed a selection for the reserve fence edge, but not for similar fences away from the reserve. ConclusionsInvasive predators such as feral cats are able to focus their movements and activity to where prey availability is greatest, including the edges of fenced conservation reserves. This limits the capacity of reserves to function as source areas from which animals can recolonise the surrounding landscape, and increases predation pressure on populations of other species living on the reserve edge. ImplicationsManagers of fenced conservation reserves should be aware that increased predator control may be critical for offsetting the elevated impacts of feral cats attracted to the reserve fence.

Applying home-range and landscape-use data to design effective feral-cat control programs

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Bengsen ◽  
John A. Butler ◽  
Pip Masters
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Habitat Preferences ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Gps Tracking ◽  
Feral Cat ◽  
Feral Cats ◽  
Small Areas ◽  
Control Programs ◽  
Spatial Coverage ◽  
Landscape Use

Context Effective feral-cat (Felis silvestris catus) management requires a sound understanding of the ways cats use their environment. Key characteristics of landscape use by cats vary widely among different regions and different conditions. Aims The present study aimed to describe the most important characteristics of landscape use by feral cats on a large, human-populated island, and to use this information to guide the development of feral-cat management programs. Methods We used GPS tracking collars to record the movements of 13 feral cats at two sites on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, for between 20 and 106 days. We described home-range extents by using local convex hulls, and derived management suggestions from examination of home-range and movement data. Key results Median feral-cat home range was 5.11 km2, and this did not differ between sexes or sites. Cats at a fragmented pastoral site tended to favour woody vegetation over open paddocks, but habitat preferences were less clear at a bushland site. Cats that preferentially used treelines at the pastoral site were almost twice as likely to be recorded close to a tree-line junction as expected. Conclusions Control programs for feral cats on Kangaroo Island should deploy control devices at a density no less than 1.7 devices km–2. Spatial coverage should be as large as practicable or repeated frequently. Infrequent programs covering small areas can be expected only to provide short-term reductions in cat abundance. Implications The information gained from the present study will contribute to the development of strategic sustained management plans for feral cats on Kangaroo Island. The principles from which we inferred management guidelines are applicable to other regions and species.

scholarly journals Cactaceae: uses and knowledge of rural communities in the semi-arid zones of Cucaita, Ráquira and Villa de Leyva (Boyacá, Colombia)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Porras–Flórez ◽  
Sofía Albesiano ◽  
Kendry Hernández–Herrera ◽  
Nubia Gómez–Velázco ◽  
Leopoldo Arrieta–Violet
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Educational Level ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Arid Zones ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Family ◽  
Large Scale Cultivation ◽  
Semi Arid

AbstractTaxa of the family Cactaceae presents morphological and reproductive characteristics, which are used by rural communities in arid and semi-arid areas, for food, medicinal and ornamental purposes. The objectives were to identify the most used species and to relate the socioeconomic factors of the informants with their knowledge of the species. To this end, 262 semi-structured interviews were applied, with questions such as name, age, gender, educational level, source of employment, among others; eight categories of use were established: agro-ecological, agricultural, commercial, environmental service, food, medicinal, ornamental and technological; three indexes were calculated, relative importance, the value of use for each of the species and wealth of knowledge of the interviewees. Nine species are reported, from which eight are used as food and ornamental, standing out Opuntia ficus-indica for its diversity of uses, while Cylindropuntia tunicata does not report any utility. Variables such as age and residence time showed a significant relationship with the number of plants used by the interviewees. It is expected to contribute to the preservation of cacti, local knowledge and encourage large-scale cultivation since species such as Mammillaria columbiana, Melocactus andinus, and Melocactus curvispinus are being used in an unsustainable way, which could cause their local extinction.

scholarly journals Fishing for Feral Cats in a Naturally Fragmented Rocky Landscape Using Movement Data

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 4925
Author(s):  
Sandra D. Williamson ◽  
Richard van Dongen ◽  
Lewis Trotter ◽  
Russell Palmer ◽  
Todd P. Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Species Distribution ◽  
Species Distribution Models ◽  
Brownian Bridge ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Control Effort ◽  
Feral Cats ◽  
Movement Data

Feral cats are one of the most damaging predators on Earth. They can be found throughout most of Australia’s mainland and many of its larger islands, where they are adaptable predators responsible for the decline and extinction of many species of native fauna. Managing feral cat populations to mitigate their impacts is a conservation priority. Control strategies can be better informed by knowledge of the locations that cats frequent the most. However, this information is rarely captured at the population level and therefore requires modelling based on observations of a sample of individuals. Here, we use movement data from collared feral cats to estimate home range sizes by gender and create species distribution models in the Pilbara bioregion of Western Australia. Home ranges were estimated using dynamic Brownian bridge movement models and split into 50% and 95% utilisation distribution contours. Species distribution models used points intersecting with the 50% utilisation contours and thinned by spacing points 500 m apart to remove sampling bias. Male cat home ranges were between 5 km2 (50% utilisation) and 34 km2 (95% utilisation), which were approximately twice the size of the female cats studied (2–17 km2). Species distribution modelling revealed a preference for low-lying riparian habitats with highly productive vegetation cover and a tendency to avoid newly burnt areas and topographically complex, rocky landscapes. Conservation management can benefit by targeting control effort in preferential habitat.

Blade ploughs as an alternative to tined rippers for rabbit warren destruction in semi-arid areas.

1989 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 40
Author(s):  
LP Hunt
Keyword(s):  
South Australia ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Semi Arid

A tractor-mounted blade plough was used to control rabbits in semi-arid South Australia by destroying their warrens. This implement was compared with a conventional two-tine ripper on the basis of effectiveness and cost. The blade plough was slightly less effective (overall mean 88% warrens destroyed) than the ripper (91% destroyed) three weeks after treatment but this difference was not significant. Warrens treated with the blade plough also had a slightly higher rate of reopening although the difference between treatments was not significant until 54 weeks after treatment. The blade plough was significantly faster in destroying warrens (mean 6.93 min cf. 9.88 min) despite frequent bogging of the tractor. The choice of a more suitable tractor should overcome this problem. Costs were similar but a small saving can be made by using a blade plough if a suitable tractor is already owned by the landholder. Including one follow-up treatment the cost of destruction per warren was $2.30 with the blade plough compared with $2.61 for the ripper. For properties where stock numbers are restricted, the return on an investment in rabbit control was estimated to be 13% per annum for the blade plough and 12% per annum for the ripper. Where stock numbers can be increased returns should be greater.

The Distribution of Red Kangaroos in Relation to Range Regeneration.

1993 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
GL Norbury ◽  
DC Norbury
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Local Area ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Radio Tracking ◽  
Control Programs ◽  
Local Populations ◽  
Native Shrubs ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Widespread View ◽  
Semi Arid

Pastoralists frequently claim that attempts at range regeneration in arid and semi-arid areas are thwarted by kangaroos. This paper examines the possibility that the impact of kangaroo grazing is exacerbated by an influx of kangaroos onto regeneration sites. The amount of kangaroo dung in a 7500 ha paddock in arid Western Australia increased six-fold over a 15-month period following the removal of sheep. A similar influx was apparent in another destocked paddock that provided unusually high offtake of kangaroos by a commercial shooter. The amount of kangaroo dung remained relatively stable in a control paddock that was stocked. Some areas subject to cultivation and reseeding with native shrubs also showed increased amounts of kangaroo dung, indicating relatively intense kangaroo grazing. Radio-tracking of 46 kangaroos showed them to be mostly sedentary, suggesting that 'invading' kangaroos emerge from the local area. This conclusion is contrary to the widespread view that kangaroos migrate from distant locations. Thus, kangaroo control programs on sensitive areas are likely to be long-lasting because incursions are predominantly from local populations.

scholarly journals Diversity, distribution and role of wild crucifers in major cabbage and kale growing areas of Kenya

2008 ◽  
Vol 99 (3) ◽  
pp. 287-297 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Kahuthia-Gathu ◽  
B. Löhr ◽  
H.M. Poehling ◽  
P.K. Mbugua
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Diamondback Moth ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Raphanus Raphanistrum ◽  
Diadegma Semiclausum ◽  
Cotesia Plutellae ◽  
Cultivated Species ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Semi Arid

AbstractAn investigation of the diversity and distribution of wild crucifer species and their importance for cultivated crucifers was conducted during 2005 and 2006 in the highland and mid-altitude semi-arid areas of Kenya. Thirteen species of wild crucifers in nine genera were recorded:Raphanus raphanistrum,Erucastrum arabicum,Sisymbrium officinale,Crambe kilimandscharica,Capsella bursa-pastoris,Rorippa nudiuscula,Ro. micrantha,Ro. microphylla,Lepidium bonariense,Coronopus didymus,Brassica rapa,B. junceaand an unidentifiedBrassicaspecies. Highland areas had significantly higher species diversity and species richness than mid-altitude semi-arid areas. Species richness, diversity and evenness varied with season and location.Raphanus raphanistrumwas the dominant non-cultivated species in the highlands followed byE. arabicum, which was also present and dominant in the semi-arid study sites. Diamondback moth (DBM) was recorded from ten wild crucifer species andR. raphanistrumandE. arabicumwere the preferred host plant species. Overall, four larval, one larval-pupal and one pupal parasitoid of DBM were recorded:Diadegma semiclausum,D. mollipla, Apanteles sp.,Cotesia plutellae, Oomyzus sokolowskiiandBrachymeriaspecies, respectively.Diadegma semiclausumwas the most dominant species on all crucifers. We conclude that wild crucifers act as alternative hosts for DBM and provide refugia for DBM parasitoids, which risk local extinction through pesticide application or competition from introduced exotic parasitoid species. The wild crucifers also act as recolonization sites for DBM parasitoids.

Impact of Implementation of Large-Scale Drip Irrigation in Arid and Semi-arid Areas: Case Study of Manas River Valley

2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (13) ◽  
pp. 2064-2075 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. Q. Zhang ◽  
H. L. Xu ◽  
Z. L. Fan ◽  
M. Ye ◽  
P. J. Yu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drip Irrigation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
River Valley ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Semi Arid

Renewable resources (hydrocarbons)

1980 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 246-254 ◽  
Author(s):  
D O Hall
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Petroleum Products ◽  
Food Crops ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Large Scale Cultivation ◽  
Semi Arid

While many countries are already embarked upon large-scale cultivation of sugar- and starch-for-alcohol crops to augment their ever-increasingly expensive imports of petroleum products, studies are also being widely conducted on the possible use of hydrocarbon-producing plants. However labour-intensive such enterprises may be, they have the advantage of directly supplying fuel and chemicals; they are less competitive with food crops, and may be viable in desert or semi-arid areas.

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