Whose fault? House cat brought to remote Island (1894). A year later a species was extinct.

This article is a reminder that we should not blame the domestic or feral cat, as an invasive species on the continent of Australia and New Zealand, for the destruction of a part of the wildlife of those countries. At root, this is not the fault of the cat. 

Lyall's Wren. Image credit at base of page.

In fact, the cat is an innocent victim as much a victim as the wildlife that they kill. It is the human who is the creator of invasive species by transporting animals across the globe. We must remind ourselves of that. It may help us treat the feral cat more humanely. 

This is not happening in Australia where they blame the feral cat as a horrible invasive species attacking and killing their vulnerable, native small mammals and marsupials which are ideal prey animals for feral cats.

So why have I addressed this problem again today? Well, Forbes have an article about a "house cat" brought to a remote island in 1894 and a year later a bird species was extinct.

That species was a charming bird - adapted to life on an island - called the Lyall's Wren. Because there was an abundance of food on Stephens Island they never evolved to fly. 

This was a small, flightless bird once native to Stephens Island, New Zealand, known for its unique adaptations to a predator-free environment. It relied on its agility and camouflage rather than flight to get around its habitat but once the domestic cat was imported into the island by a lighthouse keeper in 1894 to keep them company in the solitude and monotony of that job, the bird rapidly became extinct through incessant attacks by this domestic cat and the cat's offspring.

The cat brought to the island was called Tibbles and she was pregnant! An instant family of cats brought to the island where they were allowed to roam outside of the lighthouse, into the habitat of this sweet flightless bird who suddenly became catastrophically vulnerable to predation, something they had never experienced before.

It was a unique set of circumstances but the fault lies firmly at the feet of the lighthouse keeper. The cat didn't make their way to the island by themselves. The lighthouse keeper allowed the cat to out into the habitat of this bird as mentioned. Back in the day they didn't understand the problems of conservation and predation by domestic cats.

But this single act has stained the international reputation of the domestic cat ever since. It's one more reason why the Australian authorities go diligently about their business of slaughtering hundreds of thousands of feral cats on the continent. The authorities there constantly recite this story of the destruction of an entire species of bird at the hands of a ravaging predator; the humble domestic cat.

The lighthouse keeper was David Lyall. The bird was named after him. He brought his family, his wife and at least one son and their cat to Stephens Island. He was an amateur natural history enthusiast. He was delighted to be sent to the island. He knew there would be species to study and discover. He didn't understand the dangers of bringing his cat Tibbles.

Tibbles was equally delighted because all around her was wildlife to be attacked and eaten. She would bring this small bird subsequently called Lyall's Wren back to her owner who would perform amateur taxidermy operations on the deceased animals.

By the time the catastrophic conservation problem of Tibbles had been realised, it was too late. The last known sighting of a live Lyall's Wren was in 1895, just a year after Tibbles was brought to Stephens Island.

Image credit: By John Gerrard Keulemans - Ibis 1895, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11097962

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.