Domestic cats devour more than 2,000 different animal species – with birds at the top of their menu, study finds

• Their diet includes 347 species which are threatened or low in number

They have been known to turn their noses up at inferior brands of pet food.

But it seems that domestic cats may not be all that choosy after a study showed that they devour more than 2,000 separate animal species.

Scientists, who have described cats as ‘indiscriminate predators’, have revealed that the household pets consume a vast diet of 2,084 animal species globally, including 981 bird, 463 reptile and 431 mammal species.

Their diet includes 347 species which are threatened or low in number, including the endangered green sea turtle. Meanwhile, species eaten by pet cats which have already become extinct include the Paradise parrot from Australia and the New Zealand quail.

In total, researchers worked out cats eat almost one in ten known types of bird, and 4 per cent of known mammal species.

Scientists, who have described cats as ‘indiscriminate predators’, have revealed that the household pets consume a vast diet of 2,084 animal species globally, including 981 bird, 463 reptile and 431 mammal species

It follows debate from environmentalists over the threat posed to wildlife by pet cats, which means some now believe all cats should be kept indoors or confined to outdoor enclosures next to their home called ‘catios’.

Researchers led by Auburn University in the US created the largest-ever database of what cats eat globally based on 533 scientific studies.

Birds were the most common victim of domestic cats in Europe, followed by mammals.

The researchers state: ‘Our study sheds light on the predatory habits of one of the world’s most successful and widely distributed invasive predators.’

They conclude: ‘Collectively, our findings demonstrate that cats are indiscriminate predators and eat essentially any type of animal that they can capture at some life stage or can scavenge.’

Since cats were first domesticated more than 9,000 years ago, pet and stray cats have spread across the globe and are now found across all continents, except Antarctica.

The new study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found almost half the species eaten by cats are birds, while about a fifth are reptiles and about a fifth are mammals.

Their diet includes 347 species which are threatened or low in number, including the endangered green sea turtle

Cats consume 119 species of insect and 57 amphibian species.

Almost 17 per cent of the species they were found to eat globally were of conservation concern, such as being threatened, near-threatened or endangered.

Researchers found islands contained three times the proportion of animal species eaten by cats whose numbers were a concern – probably because these animals did not evolve with cats so were less able to evade them when the creatures arrived.

Animals eaten by cats which are now extinct in the wild include the Hawaiian crow.

The researchers say, as well as driving some species to extinction, cats spread diseases and breed with wildcats, creating hybrid cats.

Because most studies of their prey have been conducted in Australia and its nearby islands, and in the US, the number of species killed by cats worldwide is likely to be even higher than calculated so far.

But the evidence so far shows the most commonly observed prey for cats, based on studies, include house mice, European rabbits, house sparrows and rats.

The largest animals they have been found to eat – likely young animals or carcasses they have found and scavenged – include green sea turtles, emus, cows and the American bullfrog.

The authors warn: ‘The presence of cats outdoors can create landscapes of fear that result in changes to wildlife behaviour, from where a species occurs on the landscape to their foraging decisions and breeding success, which is of particular concern for threatened species.

‘Taken together, these impacts provide strong impetus to advance policy and management initiatives that seek to reduce the impacts of free-ranging cats.’

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