The effects of alternative rabbit control methods on feral cat activity in an open, semi-arid landscape

The availability of invasive prey often plays an important role in regulating cointroduced invasive predator populations. As predators have been shown to respond rapidly to declines in prey populations, our objective was to experimentally test how local population reduction of an invasive prey species, the European rabbit ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ), affects the activity of an introduced predator, the feral cat ( Felis catus ). To test the effectiveness of three different rabbit control methods, activity levels of cats were surveyed with remote infrared wildlife cameras in three treatment and four control sites. The rabbit control treatments were implemented in extensive open landscapes in the semi-arid zone of South Australia, and consisted of shooting of rabbits, destruction of rabbit warrens, and the targeted delivery of baits treated with RHDV. The results indicate that only the destruction of rabbit warrens has observable effects on the number of cat detections on cameras. Cat detections decreased in the areas where rabbit warrens were destroyed and increased in adjacent areas where rabbits were still abundant. This suggests that cats vacated the treated area and moved into surrounding areas of abundant introduced prey.