KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii (AP) — As soon as the familiar Subaru Forester rolls into a junkyard on Hawaii’s Big Island, hordes of feral cats emerge from the shade of parked trucks and bushes. They chase the car to get a meal – a gravy train that probably won’t be around for much longer.
A law going into effect in Hawaii County at the beginning of the new year bans the keeping of wild animals within the county. This is to protect native species, such as an endangered goose called the Nene goose, from superpredators introduced to the islands by Europeans in the 18th century.
But the measure is unpopular with many cat lovers, including Subaru driver Liz Swan, who has been raising feral cats on the Big Island for 33 years.
“I don’t think cat extinction should be at the expense of Nene cats,” Swan said. “They are all living creatures.”
It’s unclear how many feral cats – abandoned pets and their offspring – live on the Big Island. It is estimated to number in the tens of thousands, with some dense settlements supported by humans. Opponents of the ban say it will hinder their efforts to control the population by trapping and neutering animals, and hungry cats will have to hunt for food.
various threats
About 200 cats live at the Kealakehe Transfer Station and Recycling Center, not far from the bustling Kona tourist area. Swann shows up late every afternoon with water and roughage and says she has never seen Nene near the dump. Despite living in the litter, the cats there generally look robust and most lack the tips of their ears, indicating that they have been neutered.
Biologists say the cats threaten native species both directly – by killing them – and indirectly. Food left for cats can attract native animals and bring them into closer contact with humans. Cat feces can also spread the parasite that causes toxoplasmosis, a disease that kills endangered Hawaiian monk seals and native birds.
Last year, a male nene (pronounced “neh-neh”) was hit and killed by a car while crossing a road in Hilo on the island’s east to reach a cat feeding station. The state Department of Land and Natural Resources announced this month that the goose, whose surviving partner also died of toxoplasmosis in 2024, had recently mated with another partner and nested in a park in Hilo.
The department said the county’s feeding ban will help protect them.
A Hawaii biologist’s perspective
State Wildlife Biologist Raymond McGuire recently inspected Nene’s nesting site in a barren black rock field near the Waikoloa Resort Mall. It’s not their traditional habitat, but he’s seen geese risking being hit by cars by flying in for food, and some geese nested there last year.
As he approached, a pair of cat’s eyes poked out of a crack in the lava. The cats came out of their corner, perhaps mistaking him for a possible food offerer.
McGuire was relieved to see no Ningning nearby, but dismayed by the evidence that the cat had been fed: an empty water bowl and an aluminum pot.
He is a cat owner—“My favorite animal is a cat”—but as a Hawaiian his love of nature inspired him to work in conservation, believing there was no room for cats where native species struggled to survive.
“There are a lot of birds that my kids will never see, but I got to see,” he said, referring to native forest birds. “I think about my ancestors and I do wonder: Are we doing things that honor them enough? Because they did take steps to protect them.”
Feral cats are a problem in many places, but Hawaii’s sensitive ecosystems are filled with species that evolved in the absence of mammalian predators, making them particularly vulnerable, McGuire said.
“I feel sorry for the cat”
Hawaiian culture is closely related to the animals of Hawaii. Big Island Mayor Kimo Alameda noted that aumakua (ancestral spirit guides) can take animal forms. He said his aumakua are sharks.
Alameda decided to let the measure go into effect without his signature after the county council passed the measure on a 6-2 veto-proof vote. Opponents convinced him it would harm the cats.
“I have a soft spot for it,” he said. “I feel sorry for the cat.”
Alameda said the debate was so contentious that some opponents sent him hateful messages.
The mayor said he wants police to treat enforcement as a secondary priority. A first violation is subject to a fine of up to $50 and subsequent violations are subject to a fine of up to $500.
Will a ban prompt breeders to work in secret?
For Kauai cultural practitioner Makala Kaʻomoana, who works to preserve Hawaiian heritage, the answer is simple.
She said there’s no difference between catching, neutering and releasing cats because they can still hunt.
“These cats have to be removed,” she said.
Debbie Cravatta, who feeds cats in her West Hawaii community, questions why.
“It’s a native species – why would it dominate a domestic cat that was pregnant and had given birth to six kittens in the wild?” Cravata said. “Why is that life more valuable than this life?”
Opponents also argue that the ban may simply drive feeding efforts underground.
“I’m not going to let them starve,” Swann said.
___
Kelleher reported from Honolulu.