Gregory Andrews, Australia’s threatened-species commissioner said that Hunt has declared “war on feral cats” and has asked him to take charge of that program. Feral cats are domestic cats, and their descendents, that have returned to a wild state, living in Australia’s expansive bushland.
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According to Britain’s Guardian newspaper, Australia has one of the worst extinction records in the world, losing about 29 native mammal species since the European arrival. Part of the reason that they were able to breed to such large numbers is the ability the animals have to live in most Australian environments, “They are found all over Australia in all habitats, including forests, woodlands, grasslands, wetlands and arid areas”.
The Australian Government has announced that it is planning to kill about 2 million feral cats over a period of next five years to save native wildlife of the country, which according to authorities, is facing risk of extinction due to the predatory behavior of feral cats. The government has set aside $6.6 million to help preserve native species, with the majority of the money focused on cat eradication.
“The Threatened Species Summit is an opportunity to explore solutions and discuss practical ways to halt Australia’s wildlife crisis at a time when our threatened species are under more pressure than ever before”, he said. It now lists some 1,800 species as under threat.
A variety of methods, including shooting, baiting, or poisoning, will be used to cull feral cats. Nowadays, many other native species are endangered.
“We desperately need a national body to identify invasive threats to our native plants and animals, draw up contingency plans and implement rapid responses to eradicate them”, Mr Cox said. Some of the mammals on the verge of extinction include the greater bilby, eastern bettong, western quoll, and the numbat.
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The population of feral cats in Australia has skyrocketed out of control, prompting the government to come up with plans to eliminate almost 2 million of these felines by 2020. Previously, cane toads and European wild rabbits were targets of similar campaigns.
