Eastern quoll

Dasyurus viverrinus

Blamed on cats

IUCN status: Endangered

EPBC Predator Threat Rating: High

IUCN claim: “Predation by introduced feral cats and red foxes are the most likely causes.”

Studies in support

Hollings et al. (2014) shared data suggesting that eastern quolls declined during the same period that cats increased. There is evidence of cat predation of eastern quolls (Peacock & Abbott 2014). Quolls were last confirmed in NSW (two records) 143-169 years after cats arrived (Wallach and Lundgren 2025).

Studies not in support

Fancourt et al. (2015) found no evidence of a negative correlation between quoll and cat abundance. Cats were not among predators of reintroduced quolls (Peacock & Abbott 2014; Robinson et al. 2020; Robinson et al. 2021).

Is the threat claim evidence-based?

A negative correlation between cats and eastern quolls was suggested from one study, but causality cannot be inferred since the association might be confounded. The two species co-occurred on the mainland for over a century and continue to co-occur in Tasmania after more than two centuries.

Evidence linking Dasyurus viverrinus to cats. A. Systematic review of evidence for an association between Dasyurus viverrinus and cats. Positive studies are in support of the hypothesis that cats contribute to the decline of Dasyurus viverrinus, negative studies are not in support. Predation studies include studies documenting hunting or scavenging; baiting studies are associations between poison baiting and threatened mammal abundance where information on predator abundance is not provided; population studies are associations between threatened mammal and predator abundance. Gold borders indicate studies that meet qualities of scientific rigour. B. Last records of extirpated populations relative to earliest local records of cats. Error bars show minimum and maximum extinction intervals. Predator arrival records were digitized from Abbott 2008. See methods section in Wallach and Lundgren 2025 for details on evidence categories.
Evidence linking Dasyurus viverrinus to cats. A. Systematic review of evidence for an association between Dasyurus viverrinus and cats. Positive studies are in support of the hypothesis that cats contribute to the decline of Dasyurus viverrinus, negative studies are not in support. Predation studies include studies documenting hunting or scavenging; baiting studies are associations between poison baiting and threatened mammal abundance where information on predator abundance is not provided; population studies are associations between threatened mammal and predator abundance. Gold borders indicate studies that meet qualities of scientific rigour. B. Last records of extirpated populations relative to earliest local records of cats. Error bars show minimum and maximum extinction intervals. Predator arrival records were digitized from Abbott 2008. See methods section in Wallach and Lundgren 2025 for details on evidence categories.

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).

EPBC. (2015) Threat Abatement Plan for Predation by Feral Cats. Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, Department of Environment, Government of Australia. (Table A1).

Fancourt, B.A., Hawkins, C.E., Cameron, E.Z., Jones, M.E. and Nicol, S.C., 2015. Devil declines and catastrophic cascades: is mesopredator release of feral cats inhibiting recovery of the eastern quoll?. PLoS One, 10(3), p.e0119303.

Hollings, T., Jones, M., Mooney, N. and Mccallum, H., 2014. Trophic cascades following the disease‐induced decline of an apex predator, the Tasmanian devil. Conservation Biology, 28(1), pp.63-75.

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

Peacock D, Abbott I. 2014. When the ‘native cat’would ‘plague’: historical hyperabundance in the quoll (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae) and an assessment of the role of disease, cats and foxes in its curtailment. Australian Journal of Zoology 62:294-344.

Robinson NM, Blanchard W, MacGregor C, Brewster R, Dexter N, Lindenmayer DB. 2021. Can evolutionary theories of dispersal and senescence predict postrelease survival, dispersal, and body condition of a reintroduced threatened mammal? Ecol Evol;11:1002– 1012

Robinson, N.M., Dexter, N., Brewster, R., Maple, D., MacGregor, C., Rose, K., Hall, J. and Lindenmayer, D.B., 2020. Be nimble with threat mitigation: lessons learned from the reintroduction of an endangered species. Restoration Ecology, 28(1), pp.29-38.

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