by Mary Zimmerman

Songbird populations are diminishing throughout the world. While pollution, acid rain, shrinking habitat and human sprawl are serious environmental adversaries, an agent every bit as detrimental to small bird life may be crouched in ambush in your back yard – or curled up on your lap.

Cats possess a mysterious untamed quality that fascinates the imagination of people throughout the world. Cats can be coy, cute, beautiful, affectionate and aloof, but by nature they are predators who kill for excitement.

People who own cats dearly love their pet and don’t believe it can possibly have a significant impact on nature by hunting. However, the cumulative devastation of cat attacks on wildlife is substantial. Among their prey are mice, rats, chipmunks and ground squirrels. The general public does not get too upset about small mammals, especially mice, being devoured by cats, but unfortunately, these cats also kill songbirds. Most people are not comfortable with this image. Hawks and owls also depend on small mammals for food, and when not available, will prey on birds.

Cat owners – even people who claim to love small wildlife – often manage to rationalize their pet’s behavior as “only killing a few birds through natural instinct” yet, the situation is far from natural. House cats are maintained and protected by their owners and are not members of any natural food chain. This allows the population to be artificially large compared to native predator species, such as fox or bobcat. The out-of-control cat population is vastly larger than all native predators put together. Predators are supposed to be rare, not abundant, in nature.

The feline population in the United States has been estimated at some 55 million. Some of these (maybe ten percent) never go outside, and perhaps another ten percent are too slow to catch anything. This leaves an overwhelming number of hunting, stalking predators lurking in bird habitats. It is impossible to know how many birds are lost from cat predation, but the numbers are high. Conservatively, if one in ten of those hunting cats kills one bird a day, the loss would be 4.4 million songbirds a day.

When a cat has any amount of free time to roam out of doors, there are few precautions cat owners can take to reduce the problem of wild life predation. However, a couple of suggestions may help: Trimming front claws during bird  nesting season helps prevent snaring of young birds from the box or adults who are protecting the nest. This does not prevent cats from climbing, nor catching birds on the ground. A noisy bell may be attached to the cat’s collar. Although neighborhood adult birds may learn that the bell sound of the local cat represents danger, young birds and less common birds that are migrating may still be at risk. Many cats are bright enough to figure out how to stalk silently even with a bell. Because hunting is instinctive, even well-fed cats still hunt. A well-fed pet is apt to be more fit, and thus a more successful hunter.

It may be hard to break an adult cat of the urge to roam outdoors. Letting the cat out as infrequently as possible and gradually increasing the time indoors can help. When the cat is out, keep it confined to an area and under observation. Having the cat spayed or neutered will help as well. It’s best not to let a cat roam outdoors to start with. A kitten which is not allowed to roam will not expect to do so as an adult, and remain a loving pet for many years. A cat that lives indoors has a longer life expectancy as the outdoors is dangerous for cats, too!

No one knows how many cats exist as wild animals, having returned to an untamed state from domestication, and they survive by hunting wildlife. Some research suggests the domestic cat gone wild is a much more prolific creature, having several liters a year. A few parks and refuges eliminate individual feral cats, but even those with regular removal programs probably are not keeping up with cat reproduction, even on a very localized scale. The out-of-control population is vastly larger than all native predators put together.

Protect those birds
Birds are especially vulnerable to cats at any time during the nesting season. Adults, which are harried with nesting duties and trying to defend young, are at risk. Often, the female bird is taken while brooding her young on the nest, and the nestlings starve to death, if they are not killed as well. Young birds, still unable to fly are at great risk. All birds are at risk at night during all seasons. Birds are night blind and if surprised while asleep are virtually helpless to escape a cat attack. All birds are especially vulnerable at birdbaths and feeders.

Steps may be taken to protect bird feeders and birdbaths from predator cats. Provide escape cover with brush piles and thorny shrubbery for the birds to fly to, but keep the ground clear under the feeder so that cats cannot hide within pouncing distance. In extreme situations, erecting a circle of two foot tall chicken wire around a feeding station may be effective. Defend a backyard sanctuary against marauding cats by fencing the area, and repel intruding cats with spray from a garden hose. Speak up in support of laws that prohibit domestic cats from running at large on the property of another.

If you truly care for birds and other small wildlife, be alert to what you can do to intercept violence directed at them by cats.

From the Bluebirds Across Nebraska Newsletter, Vol. 3, No.1