Cats kill billions of birds annually

This article appeared in the Feb. 8 Bird Studies Canada newsletter. 

A peer-reviewed study published in the journal Nature Communications reports that outdoor cats are the greatest source of human-caused mortality for birds and mammals in the U.S.

Research scientists from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Migratory Birds reviewed 90 previous studies and found that free-ranging cats cause substantially greater wildlife mortality than previously thought. They estimate that free-ranging domestic cats kill 1.4-3.7 billion birds and 6.9-20.7 billion mammals annually in the U.S., with about 69% of bird mortality from cat predation and 89% of the mammal mortality caused by un-owned cats (rather than owned pets).  

Select this link to read the article “The impact of free-ranging domestic cats on wildlife of the United States” by Scott R. Loss, Tom Will, and Peter P. Marra.

Please consider keeping your cat indoors.  Pass it on.
Thanks.
J.J.