DOI: 10.5061/dryad.hmgqnk9t4
title: Differential predation patterns of free-ranging cats among continents

description: Co-evolutionary relationships associated with biogeographical context
 mediate the response of native prey to introduced predators, but this
 effect has not yet been demonstrated for domestic cats. We investigated
 the main factors influencing the vulnerability of prey species to domestic
 cat (Felis catus) predation across Australia, Europe, and North America,
 where domestic cats are introduced. In addition to prey data from
 empirical records, we used machine-learning models to compensate for
 unobserved prey in the diet of cats. We found continent-specific patterns
 of predation: birds were more frequently depredated by cats in Europe and
 North America, while mammals were favoured in Australia. Bird prey traits
 were consistent across continents, but those of mammalian prey diverged,
 notably in Australia. Differences between prey and non-prey species
 included mass, distribution, and reproductive traits, except in Australian
 mammals where there was no evidence for a relationship between mass and
 the probability of being prey. Many Australian mammal prey also have a
 high extinction risk, emphasizing their vulnerability compared to European
 and North American counterparts. Our findings highlight the role of
 eco-evolutionary context in assessing predation impacts and also
 demonstrate the potential for machine learning to identify at-risk
 species, thereby aiding global conservation efforts to reduce the negative
 impacts of introduced predators.
description: # Differential predation patterns of free-ranging cats among continents
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.hmgqnk9t4](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.hmgqnk9t4) ## Description of the data and file structure ### Files and variables #### File: probability\_of\_predation\_by\_species\_xgboost.csv ##### Variables * Scientific name  * Prediction predation status: mean value of the predicted probability of being depredated from xgboost predictions. * Empirical record of predation: observed predation 1, no empirical record of predation 0. * Taxon * Continent #### File: continental\_mammal\_prey\_database.csv ##### Variables * binomial: Scientific name  * Habitat: number of habitats found in IUCN data, 5 is 5 or &gt;5. * ln.Mass: Adult body mass in grams transformed into natural logarithm. * Main.Diet: The main diet was characterized as the dominant type of food (&gt;50%) consumed by the species: Herbivores, Invertebrates, Vertebrates and Carrions, Mixed carnivores, and omnivores. * For.Niche: This trait represents the preferred stratum of each species: aerial, arboreal, ground level, and scansorial. * Prey: observed predation 1, no empirical record of predation 0. * Cont: Continent * Litter.Size: Number of offspring born per litter per female. * Trophic.Level: from 1 to 3 * Activity.Cycle: 1: nocturnal only, 2: nocturnal/crepuscular, cathemeral, crepuscular or diurnal/crepuscular, 3: diurnal only * Geographical_range: number of 10kmx10km cells where the species is found in the focal continent. * new.prey: predicted predation 1, no empirical record of predation or not predicted prey 0. #### File: continental\_bird\_prey\_database.csv ##### Variables * binomial: Scientific name  * Hand.Wing.Index: 100*DK/Lw, where DK is Kipp’s distance and Lw is wing length (i.e., Kipp’s distance corrected for wing size). Species average HWI differ from estimates in Sheard et al. (2020) because of much higher sampling of individuals in some species, as well as taxonomic effects in the BirdLife list. * Tail.Length: Distance between the tip of the longest rectrix and the point at which the two central rectrices protrude from the skin, typically measured using a ruler inserted between the two central rectrices in mm. * ln.Mass: Adult body mass in grams transformed into natural logarithm. * Habitat: number of habitats found in IUCN data, 5 is 5 or &gt;5. * ln.Clutch: number of eggs per clutch transformed into natural logarithm. * ln.Beak.Length_Nares: Length from the anterior edge of the nostrils to the tip of the beak in mm transformed into a natural logarithm. * Trophic.Level: Herbivore = species obtaining at least 70% of food resources from plants; Carnivore = species obtaining at least 70% of food resources by consuming live invertebrate or vertebrate animals; Scavenger = species obtaining at least 70% of food resources from carrion or refuse; Omnivore = species obtaining resources from multiple trophic levels in roughly equal proportion. * Primary.Lifestyle: Aerial = species spends much of the time in flight, and hunts or forages predominantly on the wing; Terrestrial = species spends majority of its time on the ground, where it obtains food while either walking or hopping (note this includes species that also wade in water with their body raised above the water); Insessorial = species spends much of the time perching above the ground, either in branches of trees and other vegetation (i.e. arboreal), or on other raised substrates including rocks, buildings, posts, and wires; Aquatic = species spends much of the time sitting on water, and obtains food while afloat or when diving under the water's surface; Generalist = species has no primary lifestyle because it spends time in different lifestyle classes. * Prey: observed predation 1, no empirical record of predation 0. * Cont: Continent. * Trophic.Niche: 'Frugivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from fruit; Granivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from seeds or nuts; Nectarivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from nectar; Herbivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from other plant materials in non-aquatic systems, including leaves, buds, whole flowers etc.; Herbivore aquatic = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from plant materials in aquatic systems, including algae and aquatic plant leaves; Invertivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from invertebrates in terrestrial systems, including insects, worms, arachnids, etc.; Vertivore = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from vertebrate animals in terrestrial systems, including mammals, birds, reptiles etc.; Aquatic Predator = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from vertebrate and invertebrate animals in aquatic systems, including fish, crustacea, molluscs, etc; Scavenger = species obtaining at least 60% of food resources from carrion, offal or refuse; Omnivore = Species using multiple niches, within or across trophic levels, in relatively equal proportions. * Geographical_range: number of 10kmx10km cells where the species is found in the focal continent. * new.prey: predicted predation 1, no empirical record of predation or not predicted prey 0.