Reducing the damage caused by feral cats (Felis catus) to wildlife, livestock and human health is a key objective for many land managers and human health agencies globally. The lack of safe and efficacious lethal control tools in many regions, however, makes the control of feral cats and their impacts challenging. We performed a baiting trial in central Queensland to measure the efficacy and safety of Eradicat^®, a feral cat bait currently approved for use only in the state of Western Australia, as a potential tool for the broadscale control of feral cats in eastern Australian environments. We used camera traps, cat-borne GPS collars and chemical residue analysis to monitor mortality and changes in feral cat populations following baiting. We also used camera traps and bird count surveys to monitor the response of key at-risk non-target species, specifically wild dogs (Canis familiaris), common brush-tailed possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) and 10 bird species at risk of consuming baits. Feral cat abundance reduced significantly (29–40%) following baiting, with reductions observed across 83% of the site. There were no significant changes in wild dog, possum or potentially bait-consuming bird populations following baiting. Our findings suggest that Eradicat^® could potentially be a safe and efficacious tool for the landscape control of feral cats at some sites in eastern Australia. Future research is required to test the safety and efficacy of Eradicat^® at other sites in eastern Australia, as suites of non-target species will vary among sites in different environments.

减少野猫 ( Felis catus ) 对野生动物、牲畜和人类健康造成的损害是全球许多土地管理者和人类健康机构的主要目标。然而，许多地区缺乏安全有效的致命控制工具，使得野猫的控制及其影响具有挑战性。我们在昆士兰中部进行了一项诱饵试验，以衡量 Eradicat ^®的有效性和安全性，一种野猫诱饵，目前仅获准在西澳大利亚州使用，作为在澳大利亚东部环境中大规模控制野猫的潜在工具。我们使用相机陷阱、猫携带的 GPS 项圈和化学残留物分析来监测诱饵后野猫种群的死亡率和变化。我们还使用相机陷阱和鸟类数量调查来监测关键的有风险的非目标物种的反应，特别是野狗 ( Canis associateis )、常见的刷尾负鼠 ( Trichosurus vulpecula) 和 10 种有食用诱饵风险的鸟类。诱饵后野猫的数量显着减少（29-40%），在 83% 的地点观察到减少。诱饵后，野狗、负鼠或可能消耗诱饵的鸟类数量没有显着变化。我们的研究结果表明，Eradicat ^®可能是一种安全有效的工具，用于在澳大利亚东部的某些地点对野猫进行景观控制。未来的研究需要在澳大利亚东部其他地点测试 Eradicat ^®的安全性和有效性，因为非目标物种套件在不同环境中的地点会有所不同。