Feral Cat Trapping Delayed

National Key Deer Refuge officials announced this week that the trapping of feral cats on Big Pine Key has been delayed until June 4. Refuge Director Anne Morkill said an original date of May 21 was released in error.

The cat trapping will be done in an effort to protect the endangered marsh rabbits, silver rice rats and other animals and birds in the area, officials say. The feral cats will be trapped alive and brought to local animal shelters before they are relocated. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently received $50,000 to remove the cats from federal refuges on Big Pine and Key Largo.

The Rice Rat, a subspecies of the Marsh Rice Rat, is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as endangered in Florida, where it lives in the westerly Keys. This rat historically lived in salt marsh habitat, and its decline came as its habitat was destroyed to make way for residential and commerical development in the Florida Keys. Much of Rice Rat's remaining habitat is within the National Key Deer Refuge, and thus is protected.

The Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit, a subspecies of the Marsh Rabbit, is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as endangered in Florida. As with a number of species native to the Florida Keys, this rabbit's decline coincided with the residential and commercial development of the string of islands off the coast of Florida. While it once lived on many of the lower Keys, it now lives on only a handful. The 250 or so individuals remaining face mortality from cats and automobiles, as well as the continued loss of habitat. Because they live west of the Seven Mile Bridge, they are essentially stranded while their habitat shrinks around them.



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