Posted on 08/05/2007 9:26:04 AM PDT by nuconvert
N.J. Town Targets Cats in Effort to Protect Endangered Birds
August 04, 2007
CAPE MAY, N.J. —
Cats are as much a part of this seaside town's genteel culture as rainbow-colored Victorian bed-and-breakfasts, trolley tours and cocktails on the porch at sunset.
They're also suspect No. 1 in many deaths of the endangered piping plover, a fist-sized, white-and-brown fuzzball of a bird that has closed beaches and stopped development projects in the interest of protecting their habitat.
With only 115 pairs of piping plovers left in the state, the federal government may intervene on the side of the birds, which has set both fur and feather flying here. Cat lovers fear the roaming felines will be euthanized, while bird lovers are wary of a rare species being wiped out.
"This is a very emotional issue; this really is a cat town," said resident Pat Peckham. "I think they should leave the cats where they are. I'm a firm believer in letting nature take its course."
A cat's nature and its appetite for critters are just what have bird enthusiasts concerned.
Cape May is one of the prime bird-watching spots in all of North America; the World Series of Birding is held here each year. And with bird watching and related expenditures bringing in nearly $2 billion a year to New Jersey's economy, the feathers may win this fight.
The plovers, which breed on East Coast beaches during warm weather, build nest in sandy, open stretches of beach, making them and their chicks easy prey for a variety of predators, including foxes, gulls, raccoons and cats.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
susie
Feral cats should be trapped and euthanized regardless of whether they affect an endangered bird species or not. They aren’t part of the natural ecosystem and they don’t belong there.
They need to “target” dogs, too. We keep our cats indoors (so they won’t be coyote snacks), but when we had our dog here, he was a bird killing machine. No way to discourage him, either. Everyone is quick to blame cats for bird deaths and maulings, but dogs are just as bad.
Natural ecosystem? You sound like a Gore-ite.
Guess what? Lots of critters currently in the “ecosystem” aren’t natural to it—including us two legged critters. Most breeds of dogs aren’t aren’t natural to the “ecosystem” in the US, and let me tell you, packs of wild dogs are far more dangerous than feral cats. We had to shoot a number of them last year when they were running down our cattle. They killed several calves. These were dogs, not coyotes.
People bring their dogs to the country, then desert them to fend for themselves, and the next thing you know, they’ve joined a pack and have become a menace.
I had a Siberian Husky like that. She stayed in the yard though. I don’t have a problem with any non-native animal being removed (killed or otherwise) to protect local native species. It’s too bad that someone, somewhere contributed to the problem by letting their domestic pets run wild.
You see a cute little endangered beach bird.
Your kitty sees lunch.
In my world you keep your animal in your yard are home if you want them healthy.
“They [cats] aren’t part of the natural ecosystem and they don’t belong there.”
Mice and rats are, though......
I don’t necessarily disagree that something might need to be done with the cats but a questions arises with that 2 billion dollar figure. I’m having trouble believing that bird watching brings in 2 billion dollars into the state or if it does that the piping plover brings in the majority share of it. I’ll bet cats and their related expenses are a multibillion dollar addition to New Jersey, just in terms of the sales taxes on cat food, cat meds,kitty litter and related cat boxes, cat condos and beds, cat nip and cat toys.
So if you are going to cite economics, the cats win hands down!
Sounds like the sooner they become extinct, the better. Survival of the fittest, it's natures design. If they are too stupid to change their habits and nest where it's safe, then they can join the rest of the fossils. It's completely natural and has been happening for thousands (or billions if you are of that religion) years.
Yup.
When we lived in East Texas (rural area) people would tell me how upset they were that their cat *ran away*, and I always thought...no, you’re cat was hit by a car, eaten by coyotes, shot by a farmer, or something like those things. It’s a short life for loose cats. I read a number of years ago that the average age at death for an intact tomcat who was allowed to roam was 5 years. I’m sure if they are neutered they last a little longer because they don’t get septic from a catfight. However, there are still cars and coyotes and people who don’t care for cats.
susie
Gosh, it’s pretty difficult for a dog that is not roaming around to kill many birds. Not impossible (one of my goldens once caught a bird on the fly as it flew out of a bush while we were hunting with her—but it wasn’t a gamebird and we released it none the worse for wear), but unlikely enough that unless they are roaming at large they are probably not killing enough birds to make a dent. I also advocate dogs being kept on their own property and under control.
susie
Ping!
No they aren't. Sounds like you dog picked up a bad habit which you were unable to break it of. Dogs don't normally become obsessed with killing tweety birds. They do have suppressed natural instincts to hunt rodents and larger game birds like pheasants and grouse. Usually you have to work with them to bring that out. They are quite content to depend on you to fill their dog dish and fetch the stick, which is why dogs are so loyal. It's all about the food dish for them.
Plus, there aren't packs of wild dogs roaming around in numbers anywhere near the numbers feral cats. You might be interested in using google to look up statistics on feral cats and the number of song birds they kill annually.
“You see a cute little endangered beach bird.
Your kitty sees lunch.”
I see a threat to the Horseshoe crab population. Been through this already with crabs and migratory birds.
The cats kill the birds, the birds cannot eat all the crab eggs, the crabs clean the marshlands, the people can catch and eat healthy fish.
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