Cats were added to the database with 1,786 other species that were already included.
A Polish scientific institution has classified domestic cats as an “invasive alien species.”
It refers to the emerging scientific consensus that the number of birds and other wildlife that domestic cats pursue and kill causes damage.
However, Wojciech Solarz, a biologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences, was unprepared for the outcry from some cat lovers when he entered Felis catus, the scientific term for the domestic cat, into a national database maintained by the Institute of Nature Conservation at the academy.
Mr. Solarz stated that the database currently contained 1,786 additional species without concerns.
However, invasive alien species number 1,787 is so liked that it is frequently honored at Poland’s cemetery for cats and dogs.
Mr. Solarz stated that the cat satisfies all of the requirements for inclusion among alien invasive species.
During a TVN show, the biologist disagreed with the author of The Happy Cat, who argued that cats were wrongly allocated excessive responsibility.
Dorota Suminska cited additional factors of dwindling biodiversity, such as a dirty environment and urban building facades that kill birds in flight.
The institute has emphasized that it is “opposed to any animal mistreatment.”
They said that the categorization of domestic cats adhered to European Union regulations.
The institute observed Felis catus were likely domesticated roughly 10,000 years ago in the center of the ancient Middle Eastern civilizations, rendering them scientifically foreign to Europe.
During bird breeding season, the Polish institution recommends that cat owners limit the amount of time their pets spend outdoors.
