Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-sxzjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-16T21:43:37.188Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Compounding and complementary carnivores: Australian bird species eaten by the introduced European red fox Vulpes vulpes and domestic cat Felis catus

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2021

JOHN C.Z. WOINARSKI ,
ALYSON M. STOBO-WILSON Open the ORCID record for ALYSON M. STOBO-WILSON [Opens in a new window] ,
HEATHER M. CRAWFORD ,
STUART J. DAWSON ,
CHRIS R. DICKMAN ,
TIM S. DOHERTY ,
PATRICIA A. FLEMING ,
STEPHEN T. GARNETT ,
MATTHEW N. GENTLE  and
SARAH M. LEGGE
...Show all authors
JOHN C.Z. WOINARSKI
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory 0909, Australia.
ALYSON M. STOBO-WILSON*
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory 0909, Australia.
HEATHER M. CRAWFORD
Affiliation:
Centre for Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
STUART J. DAWSON
Affiliation:
Centre for Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
CHRIS R. DICKMAN
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Desert Ecology Research Group, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Heydon-Laurence Building A08, University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.
TIM S. DOHERTY
Affiliation:
School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Heydon-Laurence Building A08, University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.
PATRICIA A. FLEMING
Affiliation:
Centre for Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
STEPHEN T. GARNETT
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory 0909, Australia.
MATTHEW N. GENTLE
Affiliation:
Pest Animal Research Centre, Invasive Plants and Animals, Biosecurity Queensland, 203 Tor Street, Toowoomba, Queensland 4350, Australia.
SARAH M. LEGGE
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Research, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
THOMAS M. NEWSOME
Affiliation:
Global Ecology Lab, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
RUSSELL PALMER
Affiliation:
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, Locked Bag 104, Bentley Delivery Centre, Western Australia 6983, Australia.
MATTHEW W. REES
Affiliation:
Quantitative & Applied Ecology Group, School of Biosciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.
EUAN G. RITCHIE
Affiliation:
Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria 3125, Australia.
JAMES SPEED
Affiliation:
Pest Animal Research Centre, Invasive Plants and Animals, Biosecurity Queensland, 203 Tor Street, Toowoomba, Queensland 4350, Australia.
JOHN-MICHAEL STUART
Affiliation:
Centre for Terrestrial Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Harry Butler Institute, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia.
EILYSH THOMPSON
Affiliation:
Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria 3125, Australia.
JEFF TURPIN
Affiliation:
School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia.
BRETT P. MURPHY
Affiliation:
NESP Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory 0909, Australia.
*
*Author for correspondence, email: alyson.stobowilson@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Two introduced carnivores, the European red fox Vulpes vulpes and domestic cat Felis catus, have had extensive impacts on Australian biodiversity. In this study, we collate information on consumption of Australian birds by the fox, paralleling a recent study reporting on birds consumed by cats. We found records of consumption by foxes on 128 native bird species (18% of the non-vagrant bird fauna and 25% of those species within the fox’s range), a smaller tally than for cats (343 species, including 297 within the fox’s Australian range, a subset of that of the cat). Most (81%) bird species eaten by foxes are also eaten by cats, suggesting that predation impacts are compounded. As with consumption by cats, birds that nest or forage on the ground are most likely to be consumed by foxes. However, there is also some partitioning, with records of consumption by foxes but not cats for 25 bird species, indicating that impacts of the two predators may also be complementary. Bird species ≥3.4 kg were more likely to be eaten by foxes, and those <3.4 kg by cats. Our compilation provides an inventory and describes characteristics of Australian bird species known to be consumed by foxes, but we acknowledge that records of predation do not imply population-level impacts. Nonetheless, there is sufficient information from other studies to demonstrate that fox predation has significant impacts on the population viability of some Australian birds, especially larger birds, and those that nest or forage on the ground.

Keywords

birdintroduced speciespredationthreatened species
Type
Research Article
Information
Bird Conservation International , Volume 32 , Issue 3 , September 2022 , pp. 506 - 522
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of BirdLife International

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abbott, I. (2008a) Historical perspectives of the ecology of some conspicuous vertebrate species in south-west Western Australia. Conserv Sci West Aust. 6: 1–214.Google Scholar
Abbott, I. (2008b) The spread of the cat, Felis catus, in Australia: re-examination of the current conceptual model with additional information. Conserv Sci West Aust. 7: 1–17.Google Scholar
Abbott, I., Peacock, D. & Short, J. (2014) The new guard: the arrival and impacts of cats and foxes. In Carnivores of Australia: past, present and future, eds. Glen, A.S. & Dickman, C.R., 69–104. Collingwood, CSIRO Publishing.Google Scholar
Abbott, I. J. (2011) The importation, release, establishment, spread, and early impact on prey animals of the red fox Vulpes vulpes in Victoria and adjoining parts of south-eastern Australia. Aust Zoo. 35: 463–533.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Atlas of Living Australia. (2020). Occurrence records. Retrieved from http://ala.org.au 1st June 2020Google Scholar
Barton, K. (2018) Package “MuMIn” Multi-Model Inference.Google Scholar
Blackburn, T. M., Cassey, P., Duncan, R. P., Evans, K. L. & Gaston, K. J. (2004) Avian extinction and mammalian introductions on oceanic islands. Science. 305: 1955–1958.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bourne, J. & Klomp, N. I. (2004) Ecology and management of the little penguin Eudyptula minor in Sydney Harbour. In Urban Wildlife: More than Meets the Eye, eds. Lunney, D., Eby, P., Hutchings, P. & Burgin, S., 131–137. Sydney, Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burnham, K. P. & Anderson, D. R. (2002) Model selection and multimodel inference: a practical information-theoretic approach. Berlin, Springer.Google Scholar
Campbell, A. J. (1915) Missing birds. Emu. 14: 167–168.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Catling, P. C. (1988) Similarities and contrasts in the diets of foxes, Vulpes vulpes, and cats, Felis catus, relative to fluctuating prey populations and drought. Wildlife Research. 15: 307–317.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Claridge, A. W., Cunningham, R. B., Catling, P. C. & Reid, A. M. (2010) Trends in the activity levels of forest- dwelling vertebrate fauna against a background of intensive baiting for foxes. For Ecol Manage. 260: 822–832.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cotts, H. B. (1946) The edibility of birds. Proc Zool Soc Lond. 116: 371–524.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cotts, H. B. (1953) The palatability of the eggs of birds: illustrated by experiments on the food preferences of the Ferret (Putorius furo) and Cat (Felis catus); with notes on other egg‐eating Carnivora. Proc Zool Soc Lond. 123: 123-141.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Sousa, L. L., Silva, S. M. & Xavier, R. (2019) DNA metabarcoding in diet studies: Unveiling ecological aspects in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Environmental DNA. 1: 199–214.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doherty, T. S., Glen, A. S., Nimmo, D. G., Ritchie, E. G. & Dickman, C. R. (2016) Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 113: 11261–11265.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dowling, B. & Weston, M. A. (1999) Managing a breeding population of the Hooded Plover Thinornis rubricollis in a high-use recreational environment. Bird Conserv Int. 9: 255–270.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fleming, P., Crawford, H., Stobo-Wilson, A., Dundas, S., Dawson, S., Stuart, J.-M., O’Connor, J., Speed, J., Gentle, M., Riley, J., Turpin, J., Thompson, E., Ritchie, E., Palmer, R., Newsome, T., Dickman, C., Saunders, G. & Woinarski, J. (2021) The diet of the introduced red fox Vulpes vulpes in Australia: analysis of temporal and spatial patterns. Mammal Rev. 51: 508–527.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fleming, P. A., Crawford, H. M., Auckland, C. H. & Calver, M. C. (2020) Body size and bite force of stray and feral cats—are bigger or older cats taking the largest or more difficult-to-handle prey? Animals. 10: 707.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Forbes-Harper, J. L., Crawford, H. M., Dundas, S. J., Warburton, N. M., Adams, P. J., Bateman, P. W., Calver, M. C. & Fleming, P. A. (2017) Diet and bite force in red foxes: ontogenetic and sex differences in an invasive carnivore. J Zoology. 303: 54–63.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frith, H. J. (1959) Breeding of the mallee-fowl, Leipoa ocellata Gould (Megapodiidae). Wildl Res. 4: 31–60.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garnett, S. T., Duursma, D. E., Ehmke, G., Guay, P.-J., Stewart, A., Szabo, J. K., Weston, M. A., Bennett, S., Crowley, G. M., Drynan, D., Dutson, G., Fitzherbert, K. & Franklin, D. C. (2015) Biological, ecological, conservation and legal information for all species and subspecies of Australian bird. Scientific data. 2.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Garnett, S. T., Szabo, J. K. & Dutson, G. (2011) The action plan for Australian birds 2010. Collingwood, CSIRO Publishing.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gates, J. A. & Paton, D. C. (2005) The distribution of Bush Stone-curlews (Burhinus grallarius) in South Australia, with particular reference to Kangaroo Island. Emu. 105: 241–247.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gelman, A. (2008) Scaling regression inputs by dividing by two standard deviations. Statistical Methods. 27: 2865–2873.Google ScholarPubMed
Glen, A. S. (2014) Fur, feathers and scales: interactions between mammalian, reptilian and avian predators. In Carnivores of Australia: past, present and future, eds. Glen, A.S. & Dickman, C.R., 279–299. Collingwood, CSIRO Publishing.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Glen, A. S., Pennay, M., Dickman, C. R., Wintle, B. A. & Firestone, K. B. (2011) Diets of sympatric native and introduced carnivores in the Barrington Tops, eastern Australia. Austral Ecol. 36: 290–296.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goth, A. & Vogel, U. (2002) Chick survival in the megapode Alectura lathami (Australian brush-turkey). Wildl Res. 29: 503–511.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harding, E. K., Doak, D. F. & Albertson, J. D. (2001) Evaluating the effectiveness of predator control: the non‐native red fox as a case study. Conser Biol. 15: 1114–1122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Higgins, P. J. & Davies, S. J. J. F. (1996) Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds. Volume 3. Snipe to Pigeons. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Johnson, C. (2006) Australia’s mammal extinctions: a 50,000 year history. Port Melbourne, Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Johnston, G. R. (2016) Drought increases the impact of introduced European foxes on breeding Australian pelicans. Wildl Res. 43: 507–514.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kinnear, J. E., Krebs, C. J., Pentland, C., Orell, P., Holme, C. & Karvinen, R. (2010) Predator-baiting experiments for the conservation of rock-wallabies in Western Australia: a 25-year review with recent advances. Wildl Res. 37: 57–67.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kirkwood, R., Sutherland, D. R., Murphy, S. & Dann, P. (2014) Lessons from long-term predator control: a case study with the red fox. Wildlife Research. 41: 222–232.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Le Souef, A. S. (1923) The Australian native animals: how they stand today, and the cause of the scarcity of certain species. Aust Zool. 3: 108–111Google Scholar
Legge, S., Woinarski, J. C. Z., Dickman, C. R., Murphy, B. P., Woolley, L.-A. & Calver, M. C. (2020) We need to worry about Bella and Charlie: the impacts of pet cats on Australian wildlife. Wildl Res. 47: 523–539.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Legge, S. M., Woinarski, J. C. Z., Burbidge, A. A., Palmer, A., Ringma, J., Radford, J., Mitchell, N., Bode, M., Wintle, B., Baselar, M., Bentley, J., Copley, P., Dexter, N., Dickman, C. R., Gillespie, G., Hill, B., Johnson, C., Latch, P., Letnic, M., Manning, A., McCreless, E. E., Menkhorst, P., Morris, K., Moseby, K., Page, M., Pannell, D. & Tuft, K. (2018) Havens for threatened Australian mammals: the contributions of fenced areas and offshore islands to protecting mammal species that are susceptible to introduced predators. Wildl Res. 45: 627–644.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Macdonald, D. W. (1977) On food preference in the red fox. Mammal Rev. 7: 7-23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marchant, S. & Higgins, P. J. (1990) Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds. Volume 1. Ratites to Ducks. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Marlow, N. J., Thomas, N. D., Williams, A. A. E., Macmahon, B., Lawson, J., Hitchen, Y., Angus, J. & Berry, O. (2015) Lethal 1080 baiting continues to reduce European Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) abundance after more than 25 years of continuous use in south-west Western Australia. Ecol Manag Restor. 16: 131–141.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mattingley, A. H. E. (1918) The ground-parrot (Pezoporus formosus). Emu. 17: 216–218.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mella, V. S. A., McArthur, C., Frend, R. & Crowther, M. S. (2018) Foxes in trees: a threat for Australian arboreal fauna? Aust Mammal. 40: 103–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Murphy, B. P., Woolley, L. A., Geyle, H. M., Legge, S. M., Palmer, R., Dickman, C. R., Augusteyn, J., Brown, S. C., Comer, S., Doherty, T. S., Eager, C., Edwards, G., Fordham, D. A., Harley, D., McDonald, P. J., McGregor, H., Moseby, K., Myers, C., Read, J., Riley, J., Stokeld, D., Trewella, G. J., Turpin, J. M. & Woinarski, J. C. Z. (2019) Introduced cats (Felis catus) eating a continental mammal fauna: the number of individuals killed in Australia. Biol Conserv. 237: 28–40.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O’Connor, J. M., Srivastava, S. K., Tindale, N. W. & Burnett, S. E. (2020) From carrion to Christmas beetles: the broad dietary niche of the red fox in a hybrid coastal ecosystem. Aust J Zool. 67: 82–93.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paton, D. (1990) Domestic cats and wildlife: results from initial questionnaire. Bird Observer. 696: 34–35.Google Scholar
Priddel, D. & Wheeler, R. (1994) Mortality of captive-raised malleefowl, Leipoa ocellata, released into a mallee remnant within the wheat-belt of New South Wales. Wildl Res. 21: 543–552.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Priddel, D. & Wheeler, R. (1997) Efficacy of fox control in reducing the mortality of released captive-reared malleefowl, Leipoa ocellata. Wildl Res. 24: 469–482.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
R Core Team. 2017. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna. https://www.R-project.org/.Google Scholar
Richards, S. A. (2005) Testing ecological theory using the information-theoretic approach: examples and cautionary results. Ecology. 86: 2805–2814.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robley, A., Gormley, A., Albert, R., Bowd, M., Smith, A. & Scroggie, M. (2009) Monitoring and Evaluation of Glenelg Ark – 2005 to 2008. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Technical Report Series No. 183. Heidelberg, Victoria: Department of Sustainability and Environment.Google Scholar
Sargeant, A. B., Allen, S. H. & Eberhardt, R. T. (1984) Red fox predation on breeding ducks in midcontinent North America. Wildl Monogr. 89: 3–41.Google Scholar
Saunders, D. A. (1991) The effect of land clearing on the ecology of Carnaby’s Cockatoo and the inland Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo in the wheatbelt of Western Australia. Acta XX Congressus Internationalis Ornithologici. 1: 658–665.Google Scholar
Saunders, G. R., Gentle, M. N. & Dickman, C. R. (2010) The impacts and management of foxes Vulpes vulpes in Australia. Mammal Rev. 40: 181–211.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Short, J., Kinnear, J. E. & Robley, A. (2002) Surplus killing by introduced predators in Australia—evidence for ineffective anti-predator adaptations in native prey species? Biol Conserv. 103: 283–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, M. J., Ruykys, L., Palmer, B., Palmer, N., Volck, G., Thomasz, A. & Riessen, N. (2020) The impact of a fox‐and cat‐free safe haven on the bird fauna of remnant vegetation in southwestern Australia. Restor Ecol. 28: 468–474.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sutherland, D. R., Glen, A. S. & Paul, J. (2011) Could controlling mammalian carnivores lead to mesopredator release of carnivorous reptiles? Proc Royal Soc Lond B: Biol Sci. 278: 641–648.Google ScholarPubMed
Szabo, J. K., Khwaja, N., Garnett, S. T. & Butchart, S. H. M. (2012) Global patterns and drivers of avian extinctions at the species and subspecies level. PLoS ONE. 7: e47080.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tobajas, J., Descalzo, E., Mateo, R. & Ferreras, P. (2020) Reducing nest predation of ground-nesting birds through conditioned food aversion. Biol Conserv. 242: 108405.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Dyck, S. & Strahan, R. (2008) The Mammals of Australia. Sydney, Reed New Holland.Google Scholar
Wallis, R., King, K. & Wallis, A. (2017) The Little Penguin Eudyptula minor on Middle Island, Warrnambool, Victoria: An update on population size and predator management. Vict Nat. 134: 48–51.Google Scholar
Weston, M. A. (2003) Managing the Hooded Plover in Victoria: a review of existing information. Parks Victoria Technical Series No. 4. Melbourne: Parks Victoria.Google Scholar
Wheeler, R. & Priddel, D. (2009) The impact of introduced predators on two threatened prey species: a case study from western New South Wales. Ecol Manag Restor. 10: S117–S123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
White, S. A. (1918) Birds of Lake Victoria and the Murray River for 100 Miles Down Stream. Emu. 18: 8–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woinarski, J. C. Z. (1985) Breeding biology and life history of small leaf-gleaning birds in Australian forests: response to a stable environment? Proc Ecol Soc Aust. 14: 159–168.Google Scholar
Woinarski, J. C. Z., Braby, M. F., Burbidge, A. A., Coates, D., Garnett, S. T., Fensham, R. J., Legge, S. M., McKenzie, N. L., Silcock, J. L. & Murphy, B. P. (2019a) Reading the black book: the number, timing, distribution and causes of listed extinctions in Australia. Biol Conserv. 239: 108261.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woinarski, J. C. Z., Legge, S. M. & Dickman, C. R. (2019b) Cats in Australia: companion and killer. Melbourne, CSIRO Publishing.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woinarski, J. C. Z., Murphy, B. P., Legge, S. M., Garnett, S. T., Lawes, M. J., Comer, S., Dickman, C. R., Doherty, T. S., Edwards, G., Nankivell, A., Paton, D., Palmer, R. & Woolley, L. A. (2017a) How many birds are killed by cats in Australia? Biol Conserv. 214: 76–87.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Woinarski, J. C. Z., Woolley, L. A., Garnett, S. T., Legge, S. M., Murphy, B. P., Lawes, M. J., Comer, S., Dickman, C. R., Doherty, T. S., Edwards, G., Nankivell, A., Palmer, R. & Paton, D. (2017b) Compilation and traits of Australian bird species killed by cats. Biol Conserv. 216: 1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yom-Tov, Y. (1987) The reproductive rates of Australian passerines. Wildl Res. 14: 319–330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zuur, A. F., Ieno, E. N. & Elphick, C. S. (2010) A protocol for data exploration to avoid common statistical problems. Methods Ecol Evol. 1: 3–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Woinarski et al. supplementary material

Woinarski et al. supplementary material

Download Woinarski et al. supplementary material(File)
File 1.3 MB