Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access
Abstract The domestic cat (Felis catus) is among the most popular companion animals and most abundant carnivores globally. It is also a pet with an immense ecological footprint because even non-feral and food-subsidized cats can be prolific predators. Whereas knowledge about the spatial behavior of...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-09694-9 |
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| author | Richard Bischof Nina Rosita Hansen Øyvind Skarsgard Nyheim Astrid Kisen Lillian Prestmoen Torbjørn Haugaasen |
| author_facet | Richard Bischof Nina Rosita Hansen Øyvind Skarsgard Nyheim Astrid Kisen Lillian Prestmoen Torbjørn Haugaasen |
| author_sort | Richard Bischof |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The domestic cat (Felis catus) is among the most popular companion animals and most abundant carnivores globally. It is also a pet with an immense ecological footprint because even non-feral and food-subsidized cats can be prolific predators. Whereas knowledge about the spatial behavior of individual domestic cats is growing, we still know little about how a local population of free-ranging pet cats occupies the landscape. Using a citizen science approach, we GPS-tagged 92 pet cats with outdoor access living in a residential area in southern Norway. The resulting position data allowed us to construct both individual home range kernels and a population-level utilization distribution. Our results reveal a dense predatory blanket that outdoor cats drape over and beyond the urban landscape. It is this population-level intensity surface—the “catscape”—that potential prey have to navigate. There were few gaps in the catscape within our residential study area and therefore few terrestrial refuges from potential cat predation. However, cats spent on average 79% of their outdoor time within 50 m to their owner’s home, which suggests that the primary impact is local and most acute for wildlife in the vicinity to homes with cats. We discuss the catscape as a conceptual and quantitative tool for better understanding and mitigating the environmental impact of domestic cats. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-90f2f1be54664a54b97cdd3303f37021 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-90f2f1be54664a54b97cdd3303f370212025-02-09T12:38:25ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222022-04-011211910.1038/s41598-022-09694-9Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor accessRichard Bischof0Nina Rosita Hansen1Øyvind Skarsgard Nyheim2Astrid Kisen3Lillian Prestmoen4Torbjørn Haugaasen5Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesFaculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life SciencesAbstract The domestic cat (Felis catus) is among the most popular companion animals and most abundant carnivores globally. It is also a pet with an immense ecological footprint because even non-feral and food-subsidized cats can be prolific predators. Whereas knowledge about the spatial behavior of individual domestic cats is growing, we still know little about how a local population of free-ranging pet cats occupies the landscape. Using a citizen science approach, we GPS-tagged 92 pet cats with outdoor access living in a residential area in southern Norway. The resulting position data allowed us to construct both individual home range kernels and a population-level utilization distribution. Our results reveal a dense predatory blanket that outdoor cats drape over and beyond the urban landscape. It is this population-level intensity surface—the “catscape”—that potential prey have to navigate. There were few gaps in the catscape within our residential study area and therefore few terrestrial refuges from potential cat predation. However, cats spent on average 79% of their outdoor time within 50 m to their owner’s home, which suggests that the primary impact is local and most acute for wildlife in the vicinity to homes with cats. We discuss the catscape as a conceptual and quantitative tool for better understanding and mitigating the environmental impact of domestic cats.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-09694-9 |
| spellingShingle | Richard Bischof Nina Rosita Hansen Øyvind Skarsgard Nyheim Astrid Kisen Lillian Prestmoen Torbjørn Haugaasen Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access Scientific Reports |
| title | Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| title_full | Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| title_fullStr | Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| title_short | Mapping the “catscape” formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| title_sort | mapping the catscape formed by a population of pet cats with outdoor access |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-09694-9 |
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