UW-Eau Claire recently hosted a community event focusing on the dangerous effects free-roaming cats have on the mortality of local bird populations. 

At 6 p.m. on Oct. 1 in the Woodland Theater of Davies Student Center, Peter Marra presented a lecture titled “Understanding and Responding to Threats to North American Birds.” Marra is a world-renowned ornithologist and is currently the dean of the Earth Commons at Georgetown University.

Steve Betchkal, a local ornithologist, videojournalist and the main organizer of the event, said he had originally reached out to UW-Madison to request a speaker for the event and received no response. After emailing Marra, however, he had a reply 45 minutes later.  

“I do not personally know Pete Marra, but wow, I know his work,” Betchkal said during the event’s introduction. “If it touches the lives of wild birds, it is the life work of Peter Marra. Even Dr. Marra’s friends couldn’t adequately describe that kind of breadth and depth — that kind of impact.”

Marra’s work can be seen in several scientific journals and publications such as the American Bird Conservancy, National Wildlife Federation, The Guardian, Nature, Smithsonian, Science, The Wilson Bulletin and The New York Times, just to name a few.

“It’s not often that a world-renowned scientist agrees to meet for an intimate evening of problem solving,” Betchkal said. “And that’s why we’re here. As a journalist and a scientist, it’s all about truth for me. Where is it? What is it? Why does it matter?”

Marra began his lecture by discussing the phenomenon of animal migration during the changing of the seasons. Although he focuses mainly on birds, he said he is fascinated by all migrating species.

“We as humans don’t spend a lot of time thinking about the nonhumans,” Marra said. “As we do our things on a day-to-day basis — go to a seminar, go to a movie, go to sleep —  there’s some sort of movement that’s happening on the planet by literally trillions and trillions of animals.”

According to Marra, there are about 750 to 800 species of birds in North America, and about 75% of them are migratory. Researchers have only recently begun to track these animals within the last 20 years, thanks to developing technology.

Marra has been heavily involved in tracking and analyzing the movements and trends of various bird species. He said he has discovered through his research that, within the last 50 years, the Cerulean Warbler’s population has decreased by 75%, the Rusty Blackbird by 90% and the Red Knot by 95%. These are just a few examples.

According to Marra, he discovered a net population loss of around three billion birds since 1970, and about 57% of all species are declining in North America.

“Despite (conservation efforts) like the Endangered Species Act and the Neotropical Migratory Bird Act and Partners in Flight and the Migratory Bird Center … most species are still declining, and in some cases, they’re declining worse,” Marra said.

Since most of the decreasing species are common birds, Marra said it is difficult to identify the specific threats and causes, as not all of these birds have been tracked. He said the largest known driver of bird declines is habitat loss from agricultural intensification, urban sprawl and tropical deforestation.

However, there are also other direct anthropogenic (human-related) bird mortality causes, according to Marra. This includes birds flying into windows, wind turbines and — the most notable of the three by far — cats.

Marra said free-roam cats are responsible for killing approximately 2.4 billion birds per year in North America, not to mention the 12.3 billion mammals. 

These may be cats who are released by their owners, non-owned cats who are part of Trap-Neuter-Release colonies or feral cats with no dependence on humans, according to Marra.

“Many people don’t understand the issues with cats,” Marra said. “Cats also need to be enriched … Having a catio is a wonderful solution for letting your cat outside so it’s safe and animals are safe. You can also walk your cat on a leash.”

Following Marra’s lecture was an expert panel and discussion led by Betchkal, Dr. Margaret McDougall, a veterinarian at Kindness Animal Hospital and president of the Northwestern Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Association and Shelley Janke, director of the Eau Claire Community Humane Association.

The panel explored evidence-based, effective and humane solutions that consider both bird conservation as well as the needs of cats. According to Betchkal, there was one main takeaway from the panel.

“It’s as simple as leaving your cat indoors,” Betchkal said. “This also allows cats to live up to 12 years longer on average.”

Betchkal also said that many college students who adopt a cat with their roommates will often abandon them once their lease is up, since they never determined a primary owner. He urges students to provide a proper home for their pets and not simply release them outside.

Marra said it is our responsibility to help repair the ecological connection between humans and nature and “maintain the integrity of this natural planet for future generations.” He emphasized the importance of voting, especially concerning legislation such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

“Just because our federal government may not be stepping up now, it is important at the state, at the county, at the town level,” Marra said. “I’ve learned to think about the human equation … why they are acting or why they aren’t acting.”

This event was sponsored by the UW-Eau Claire biology department and Student Office of Sustainability, the Chippewa Valley Biodiversity Partnership, the Chippewa Valley Sierra Club, the Citizen Science Center of Beaver Creek Reserve and the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology.

Matczak can be reached at [email protected].