WALKING through the bush at Lake Alexandra you are more likely to see a bunny than a Black Cockatoo, according to Mittagong woman Katrina Luck.
The former WIRES worker said feral animals were the reason local native wildlife had become so scarce.
“It is just so incredibly sad; my house lines this bush and in the last two years I have not seen one echidna, kangaroo or possum, but I have seen plenty of cats, bunnies and foxes,” Ms Luck said.
“In Moss vale you rarely ever see any bats and you are more likely to see a kangaroo on a paddock in Bong Bong Road, Bowral, than in the bush.
“Then, around here in Mittagong you hardly ever see any hummingbirds in the garden anymore.”
Ms Luck said organisations, like WIRES, needed more support.
“A lot of retired or semi-retired people are involved in bushcare, but WIRES struggle with funding and often don’t have the capacity to cope with the problem,” Ms Luck said.
“They need more support and not just financially, Council also need to step in and help educate the community on responsible pet ownership.
“I am not against cats at all, they are beautiful animals but they do need to be kept in their place.”
Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre chief executive Professor Tony Peacock said it was time we reconsidered how appropriate it is to let cats wander.
“On average every domestic cat will kill about 25 animals a year and it will vary on where they are on whether [the animals they kill] are feral or native animals, but a percentage of them will be natives,” Prof Peacock said.
Mr Peacock said the impact of feral animals is often looked at in regards to the impact on agriculture and not native fauna.
“One of the reasons being is we don’t really put a value on our native animals even though that is a very important part of what makes Australia,” Prof Peacock said.
“Plus there is a huge social impact... we are not against people having pet cats, they place an important part in society, but as much as possible they should always be desexed and contained to the greatest degree possible because there is lots of evidence to show it doesn’t matter how well fed they are, they will still hunt.
“One other myth is that if you lock them in at night it’s okay; but they hunt just as much during the day.”
Prof Peacock said just as local councils had to reconsider changing the laws concerning dogs, it could be time to look at cats.
“Now that we are thinking more widely, cats are a real threat to wildlife, and Queensland, ACT and Tasmania are all tightening their cat laws,” he said.
“If someone had the political will to say, ‘Why shouldn’t all cats be registered?’, it could go a long way to improving the situation.
“I would lean more towards legislation because as we come up with better controls for cats, domestic cats are ultimately the cause of our feral repopulation... we do need to turn the tap off. There is no point in trying to mop up the feral population while that tap is still on.”
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