The Independent—"Australia's war on cats: Government plans to cull 2 million by 2020"

This article from The Independent was mentioned at last night's Lake Worth City Commission meeting (8/4). When I heard that Australia was planning to "cull" (kill) 2 million cats I found it hard to believe—but it's absolutely true. Feral cats are decimating the environment in Australia and forcing many species into extinction.

The Palm Beach Post editorial board recently attempted a 'call to action' about cats and the destruction of the native bird population but they came up against the powerful cat lobby and backed off. Here in south Florida the cats have powerful benefactors and lobbies; the native birds and small mammals don't. 

Here is a video of one species facing extinction in Australia due to cats:
Here are two excerpts from the article in The Independent:

     The Australian government has announced plans to cull up to 2 million feral cats by 2020 in a bid to preserve dozens of native species that authorities claim face extinction because of the cats' predatory behavior.
     Speaking to a national radio station, Gregory Andrews, the country's first threatened-species Commissioner, said Australian Environment Minister Greg Hunt "is declaring war on feral cats, and he's asked me to take charge of that programme."
     Hunt unveiled the five-year plan at a Melbourne zoo on Thursday, vowing to protect Australia's native mammal and bird populations.
"We are drawing a line in the sand today which says, 'On our watch, in our time, no more species extinction,' " [emphasis added] Hunt said.

[and. . .]

     This is hardly the first time the scourge of feral cats has made national headlines in this part of the world. In 2013, a prominent economist turned environmental activist in New Zealand called for the wholesale eradication of the country's cats, deeming them "natural born killers."