Invasive predators and global biodiversity loss

• Main Authors: Tim Doherty, AS Glen, DG Nimmo, Euan Ritchie, CR Dickman
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: Science & Technology; Multidisciplinary Sciences; Science & Technology - Other Topics; extinction; feral; cat; island; invasive mammal; trophic cascade; MAMMALIAN PREDATORS; RATTUS-RATTUS; BLACK RATS; IMPACTS; ISLANDS; ERADICATION; CONSERVATION; BIOLOGY; PRIORITIES; feral cat; 050103 Invasive Species Ecology; 050204 Environmental Impact Assessment; 050202 Conservation and Biodiversity; 970105 Expanding Knowledge in the Environmental Sciences; Centre for Integrative Ecology; School of Life and Environmental Sciences; MD Multidisciplinary; 4102 Ecological applications; 4104 Environmental management; Cat Island; Rattus rattus
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30086395; https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Invasive_predators_and_global_biodiversity_loss/20872747

Significance Invasive mammalian predators are arguably the most damaging group of alien animal species for global biodiversity. Thirty species of invasive predator are implicated in the extinction or endangerment of 738 vertebrate species—collectively contributing to 58% of all bird, mammal, and reptile extinctions. Cats, rodents, dogs, and pigs have the most pervasive impacts, and endemic island faunas are most vulnerable to invasive predators. That most impacted species are insular indicates that management of invasive predators on islands should be a global conservation priority. Understanding and mitigating the impact of invasive mammalian predators is essential for reducing the rate of global biodiversity loss.