THE University of Adelaide has found that feral cats are putting the critically endangered Kangaroo Island dunnart to the brink of extinction.
The small, mouse-sized marsupial is only found on Kangaroo Island and less than 500 KI dunnarts were estimated to be active before the 2019-20 bushfires.
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Researchers assessed the stomach contents and digestive tracts of 86 feral cats that were captured between February and August 2020, after more than 98 per cent of the dunnart's habitat was severely burnt during the fires.
The remains of eight individual dunnarts were found in the digestive systems of seven different cats.
All cats were captured as part of the national feral cat control program and were euthanised in accordance with SA animal welfare laws.
The University of Adelaide's lead author Louis Lignereux from the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences said the study highlighted the urgent need to protect vulnerable species from feral cat protection, especially following natural disasters such as bushfires.
"These findings represent the first confirmation that feral cats do prey on Kangaroo Island dunnarts and suggest they are efficient hunters of this species given the small numbers of dunnarts that remain following the bushfires," he said.
"Bushfires concentrate predators and their prey in areas that are spared from the flames, so controlling the stray cat population in areas potentially inhabited by dunnarts was important."
The combined pressures of a small, isolated population, natural disasters like bushfires, and introduced predators such as feral cats could lead to the extinction of this vulnerable species, according to researchers.
The study highlighted the need to have control of feral cat populations in areas home to threatened species.
The Dunnart is a small carnivorous marsupial between 80-90 millimetres in length that weighs between 10 and 25 grams.
A federal government funded feral cat eradication program has been underway since 2015, with the aim to have KI free of feral cats by 2030.
Dr Lignereux said a 2020 study estimates there are between 1000 and 2300 feral cats on KI.
Australian Wildlife Conservancy played an important role in feral cat control and data collection for this research, and led the construction of a feral predator-free safe haven within the Western River Refuge to protect the species.
Co-authors on the research are Associate Professor Ryan O'Handley, Terrain Ecology KI's Patrick Hodgens and Heidi Groffen and Associate Singapore University's Professor Ajai Vyas.
