Carnivores of Australia
Carnivores of Australia

Author: Alistair Glen

Publisher: CSIRO PUBLISHING

Published: 2014-11-05

Total Pages: 504

ISBN-13: 064310318X

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The Australian continent provides a unique perspective on the evolution and ecology of carnivorous animals. In earlier ages, Australia provided the arena for a spectacular radiation of marsupial and reptilian predators. The causes of their extinctions are still the subject of debate. Since European settlement, Australia has seen the extinction of one large marsupial predator (the thylacine), another (the Tasmanian devil) is in danger of imminent extinction, and still others have suffered dramatic declines. By contrast, two recently-introduced predators, the fox and cat, have been spectacularly successful, with devastating impacts on the Australian fauna. Carnivores of Australia: Past, Present and Future explores Australia's unique predator communities from pre-historic, historic and current perspectives. It covers mammalian, reptilian and avian carnivores, both native and introduced to Australia. It also examines the debate surrounding how best to manage predators to protect livestock and native biodiversity. Readers will benefit from the most up-to-date synthesis by leading researchers and managers in the field of carnivore biology. By emphasising Australian carnivores as exemplars of flesh-eaters in other parts of the world, this book will be an important reference for researchers, wildlife managers and students worldwide.

Advances in Reintroduction Biology of Australian and New Zealand Fauna
Advances in Reintroduction Biology of Australian and New Zealand Fauna

Author: Doug Armstrong

Publisher: CSIRO PUBLISHING

Published: 2015-05-15

Total Pages: 369

ISBN-13: 148630303X

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The publication of Reintroduction Biology of Australian and New Zealand Fauna nearly 20 years ago introduced the new science of ‘reintroduction biology’. Since then, there have been vast changes in our understanding of the process of reintroductions and other conservation-driven translocations, and corresponding changes in regulatory frameworks governing translocations. Advances in Reintroduction Biology of Australian and New Zealand Fauna is a timely review of our understanding of translocation from an Australasian perspective, ensuring translocation becomes an increasingly effective conservation management strategy in the future. Written by experts, including reintroduction practitioners, researchers and policy makers, the book includes extensive practical advice and example case studies, identifies emerging themes and suggests future directions. Topics include: key questions in reintroduction biology; population establishment; prey naivety; disease management; dispersal; the roles of trials and experiments; modelling projections; assisted colonisation; population interchange; genetic diversity; disease management; metapopulation dynamics; reintroduced species as ecological engineers; the contributions of sanctuary networks and zoos; and extensive insights from reintroduction programs. This book is aimed at conservation practitioners and researchers, as well as conservation management agencies and NGOs. Although it is based on Australasian examples, it will be of interest globally due to synergies with reintroduction programs throughout the world.

Cats in Australia
Cats in Australia

Author: Chris Dickman

Publisher: CSIRO PUBLISHING

Published: 2019-06-01

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 1486308457

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Across the world, cats are loved as pets or are kept or tolerated for their role in controlling some animal pests. But cats, both pets and feral, also kill many native animals and this toll can be enormous. Cats have been remarkably successful in Australia, spreading pervasively across the continent and many islands, occurring in all environments, and proving to be adept and adaptable hunters. A large proportion of Australia’s distinctive fauna is threatened and recent research highlights the significant role that cats play in the decline and extinction of native species. Cats in Australia brings this research together, documenting the extent to which cats have subverted, and are continuing to subvert, Australia’s biodiversity. But the book does much more than spotlight the impacts of cats on Australian nature. It describes the origins of cats and their global spread, their long-standing and varying relationship with people, their global impacts and their ecology. It also seeks to describe the challenge of managing cats, and the options available to constrain their impacts.

On the Ecology of Australia’s Arid Zone
On the Ecology of Australia’s Arid Zone

Author: Hans Lambers

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-08-21

Total Pages: 388

ISBN-13: 3319939432

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This book will appeal to an international audience as well as be irresistible to local readers. Anyone working or with an interest in Australia’s arid zone should need ready access to this book. There is no equivalent publication out there at the moment, and this book has many authoritative chapters, richly illustrated with colourful material. The challenge of this book was to assemble current knowledge on particular topics and concepts, and principles relating to them. It is also forward-looking by identifying where there are gaps or inadequacies in knowledge, and where future research needs to be directed. Lead authors were encouraged to take such an approach; they had the opportunity to involve any author they considered appropriate. The final product shouldbe a fabulous resource, also for university courses, especially at MSc level.

Exploring Cats: Their Behaviors and Human-Cat Interactions
Exploring Cats: Their Behaviors and Human-Cat Interactions

Author: Lynette Arnason Hart

Publisher: Frontiers Media SA

Published: 2023-12-27

Total Pages: 132

ISBN-13: 2832541739

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Cats exceed dogs in their numbers as companion animals in the U.S. and much of Europe, despite them not filling working roles. In the past, their prowess as mousers on farms sometimes made them essential, but these days, many cats lead leisurely lives in people’s homes. What accounts for them becoming such appreciated family members? What are their behaviors that are so enticing? Exactly how do they respond to us? When are they preferred companion animals, more than dogs? What do we know about cultural differences in views about cats? Their growing popularity, and the relative paucity of data about owned cats living in homes, emphasizes the importance of monitoring their welfare. The anthrozoological research literature on companion animals includes extensive studies of dogs, while contributing relatively few close looks at the special behaviors and traits of domestic cats that make them so desirable as companions. We know little about the dynamics of our interactions with cats and the attachment shared with them, which may differ in some ways for those we have with dogs. Nor have we identified the specific contexts where cats are particularly or uniquely compatible. How does the type of attachment affect and shape the bond/relationship between human and cat? How are cats as emotional support animals for people with special needs, especially autism? What new information do we have about the cognitive abilities of domestic cats, and how these abilities shape cats’ behavior and relationships with humans? How do early life experiences of cats influence their behavior as adults, or their successful integration into human households? Do cats fit best in certain residential settings, or with specific types or ages of people? This Research Topic provides an opportunity to update our understanding on the special qualities and behaviors of cats, and to scrutinize our mutual interactions with these companions.

Managing Australia's Pest Animals
Managing Australia's Pest Animals

Author: Mike Braysher

Publisher: CSIRO PUBLISHING

Published: 2017-02

Total Pages: 217

ISBN-13: 1486304443

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Pest animals are but one of many factors that influence the desired outcome from managing natural resource based systems, whether for production or conservation purposes. Others include diseases, weeds, financial resources, weather and fire management. To be effective, an integrated and systematic approach is required, and the principles and strategic approach outlined in this book can also be used to plan and manage the damage due to other factors. Managing Australia's Pest Animals includes case studies of successful and unsuccessful pest management strategies and covers a range of topics, including the history of pest management, current best practice principles, and guidelines for planning and applying strategic pest management approaches to effectively reduce pest damage. This book is the first clear and comprehensive guide to best practice pest management in Australia and will benefit students and trainers of pest managers, landholders, people involved in natural resource management, and industry and government pest management staff. This book will be of great benefit to students and trainers of pest managers, landholders, pest management staff, or volunteers working in natural resource management, including private and public land managers, parks and wildlife staff, pest management agencies, local councils, Landcare and catchment management groups and private pest contractors.

Fencing for Conservation
Fencing for Conservation

Author: Michael J. Somers

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2011-11-23

Total Pages: 331

ISBN-13: 1461409020

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The conflict between increasing human population and biodiversity conservation is one of the IUCN’s key threatening processes. Conservation planning has received a great deal of coverage and research as a way of conserving biodiversity yet, while theoretically successful, it has never been tested. Simple lines on maps to illustrate conservation areas are unlikely to be successful in the light of human encroachment. It may be that some form of overt display is necessary to ensure the protection of reserves. This may be signage, presence of guards/rangers or physical fencing structures. The need for some form of barrier goes beyond restricting human access. The megafauna of Africa pose a genuine threat to human survival. In southern Africa, fences keep animals in and protect the abutting human population. Elsewhere, fencing is not considered important or viable. Where poverty is rife, it won’t take much to tip the balance from beneficial conservation areas to troublesome repositories of crop-raiders, diseases and killers. Conversely, in New Zealand fences are used to keep animals out. Introduced species have decimated New Zealand’s endemic birds, reptiles and invertebrates, and several sites have been entirely encapsulated in mouse-proof fencing to ensure their protection. Australia faces the same problems as New Zealand, however surrounds its national parks with cattle fences. Foxes and cats are free to enter and leave at will, resulting in rapid recolonisation following poisoning campaigns. How long will these poison campaigns work before tolerance, aversion or resistance evolves in the introduced predator populations?