Cat Tracker: Mapping the Ecological Impact of Cats through Citizen Science Animal Tracking

Cats were domesticated for their ability to kill wildlife humans considered pests, but now have become pests themselves in some cases. Cats have moved with people to live all around the world, often at very high densities due... [ view full abstract ]

Cats were domesticated for their ability to kill wildlife humans considered pests, but now have become pests themselves in some cases. Cats have moved with people to live all around the world, often at very high densities due to food subsidies from people. Cats have caused the extinction of numerous species endemic to islands, and are estimated to kill many billions of small mammals and birds in the continental United States each year. However, cats themselves are subject to predation by larger carnivores, which may limit the spatial extent of their hunting, and reduce their threat to native wildlife. Existing tracking studies of cats have found high variability in movement rates, but not had sufficient sample size to explain why some cats hunt widely in natural areas while others are homebodies. To address this question we have launched a citizen science project called 'Cat Tracker.' We recruit volunteers to use inexpensive GPS units to track their pet's movement for one week (or longer). In the last year we have tracked 57 different pet cats across three states, making this the largest cat-tracking study to date. Preliminary analysis of these data shows that most North Carolina cats tend to stay within a small area around their house and don't venture into nearby natural areas. We aim to expand the study to reach a total of 1000 cats by loaning our GPS units to volunteers, and by encouraging them to purchase one themselves for $50. Attention from national press has helped us already sign up another 200 participants across 48 States, four Canadian provinces, and two European countries. We are also working with colleagues to track cats in more areas with varied communities of larger predators including Long Island NY (no coyotes), and Australia and New Zealand (no native large predators).