Monitoring the effect of cat removal on reproductive success in Red-billed Tropicbird colonies on Saba, 2013 - 2014: first season of results

One of the most deleterious invasive introduced predators worldwide is the domestic cat which has been found responsible for many island extinctions worldwide. Cats can live off both natural prey and garbage and can be a particularly serious threat to ground-nesting bird populations. Saba is an important location for the Red-billed Tropicbird, Phaethon aethereus and feral cats are thought to be the main reason for the low breeding success in the southern coastal colonies of this bird. To make proper decisions in invasive predator management, information is needed on the effects of cat removal on the tropicbird breeding success and the possible resulting increase in egg predation by rats in the case of any “mesopredator release effects”. In this study researchers collected the first season of data needed to assess the effect of cat removal on the breeding success of the tropicbird on Saba.