Desert bettong

Bettongia anhydra

Blamed on cats

IUCN status: Extinct

Last seen: Bettongia anhydra were last seen in 1933 in McEwin Hills, Lake Mackay, western NT (IUCN 2023)

IUCN claim: “The Desert Bettong was probably driven to extinction because of predation by introduced Red Foxes and feral domestic cats”

Studies in support

Desert bettongs were last confirmed at McEwin Hills, NT, 43-53 years after cats arrived (Wallach and Lundgren 2025).

Studies not in support

No studies

Is the threat claim evidence-based?

NA

Evidence linking Bettongia anhydra to cats. Last records of extirpated populations relative to earliest local records of cats. Error bars show record uncertainty range. Predator arrival records were digitized from Abbott 2008.
Evidence linking Bettongia anhydra to cats. Last records of extirpated populations relative to earliest local records of cats. Error bars show record uncertainty range. Predator arrival records were digitized from Abbott 2008.

References

Abbott, The spread of the cat, Felis catus, in Australia: re-examination of the current conceptual model with additional information. Conservation Science Western Australia 7 (2008).

IUCN Red List. https://www.iucnredlist.org/ Accessed June 2023

Wallach A.D., Lundgren E.J. (2025) Review of evidence that foxes and cats cause extinctions of Australia’s endemic mammals. BioScience. DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biaf046