Whiskers in the city: domestic cat predation in Ecuadorian coastal cities and associated factors

Domestic cats pose a latent threat to wildlife that lives within the remnants of natural vegetation in urban ecosystems. Both intrinsic (e.g., age, weight, sterilization status) and extrinsic factors (e.g., night confinement, interaction time with owners at home) can influence the number of prey items caught by cats. We assessed the fauna predation by domestic cats in three cities on the coast of Ecuador. We aimed to: (i) evaluate the composition of the prey brought home by cats, counting the taxa number and their capture frequency, as well as their conservation status, and (ii) identify the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influence the quantity of prey brought home by cats (henceforth referred to as ‘prey captured’). A citizen science approach was employed to gather information about wildlife taxa caught and brought home by 100 cats in 50 households between March and October 2023. Cats captured 132 prey items, of which 53.8% were invertebrates, 27.3% reptiles, 8.3% birds, 6.8% small mammals, and 3.8% amphibians. These prey items belonged to 53 taxa, 56.6% native and 15.1% non-native. Non-native reptiles Hemidactylus sp. and Anolis sagrei were the most frequently captured taxa, and ten native taxa were among the most commonly captured, particularly odonates. This is the first study to register predation of cats on amphibians in northwestern South America. The capture by cats of Coniophanes dromiciformis, a vulnerable and probably endemic snake, is noteworthy. Three factors—age, nocturnal confinement, and the presence of toys in their homes—were the most important factors that contributed to predation events. We recommend controlling these factors to reduce the potential impacts caused by domestic cats on wildlife.