Philippine Journal of Science
153 (1): 353-361, February 2024
ISSN 0031 – 7683
Date Received: 15 Jun 2023

Cat’s Paw: Tracking the Home Range of Domestic Cats in Mount Makiling Forest Reserve

Frances Mae B. Tenorio^1,2*, Desamarie Antonette P. Fernandez³,  Maria Catalina T. de Luna⁴, Anna Pauline O. de Guia³, Juancho B. Balatibat⁵, Joselito A. Baril³, and Maria Eleanor B. Aurellado³

¹Department of Science and Technology–Science Education Institute, Bicutan, Taguig City, the Philippines ²Museum of Natural History, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna, the Philippines ³Animal Biology Division, Institute of Biology, College of Arts and Science, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna, the Philippines ⁴Animal Physiology Division, Institute of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and  Food Science, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College, Laguna, the Philippines ⁵Department of Forest  Biological ciences, College of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of the Philippines Los Baños, College,  Laguna, the Philippines

*Corresponding author: fbtenorio@up.edu.ph

ABSTRACT

Domestic cats are known to impact wildlife populations negatively; thus, it is imperative to determine how they contribute to changes in ecosystems and to create preventive measures to counteract these impacts on wildlife. This study tracked five males and one female domestic cat inside the Mount Makiling Forest Reserve, Laguna, the Philippines, with GPS collars from November 2019–March 2020. Results showed that their average 95% minimum convex polygon home range is 51.62 ha, whereas their average 95% kernel density estimate home range is 81.27
ha. Male home ranges were larger than the female, but there was no difference between day and night home ranges. The various prey items taken home consisted of lizards, rats, and bats, which were mostly native or endemic to the area. The predation return rate was 1.1/mo for all cats. Our results showed that the cats were free-ranging through the forest reserve, which may potentially impact the protection measures practiced in the reserve.