Domestic cats have become notorious in recent years as one of the most destructive invasive species on the planet, now threatening dozens of bird and mammal species with extinction. (That’s on top of the 30 or so species they have already eradicated.) When conservationists are trying to restore a threatened species to its old habitats, a single murderous cat can be enough to destroy the entire project.

Now frustrated scientists in Australia are proposing to apply criminal forensics and even a poison pill to identify and eliminate problem cats—and possibly spare other cats that are innocent of the killing. In a new study in the journal Biological Conservation, they call these experimental techniques “predator profiling.”

A team of researchers led by ecologist Katherine Moseby at the University of Adelaide looked at restoration attempts for what they call “challenging species.” That generally means mammals that are big enough, toothy enough, or just plain mean enough that you might not think the average outdoor cat would pose a threat. Many of these species—the western quoll, the burrowing bettong, the rufous hare-wallaby—are largely unfamiliar outside Australia, and that’s the point. They are endemic species found nowhere else in the world and an essential part of Australia’s natural heritage. Cats, introduced to Australia about 200 years ago, aren’t—and they have proved capable of killing native animals weighing as much as 12 pounds.  Sourced through Scoop.it from: strangebehaviors.wordpress.com