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Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) risk assessment for Australia. Amanda Page, Win Kirkpatrick and Marion Massam, May 2008, Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia. 1

RISK ASSESSMENT FOR AUSTRALIA – Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) Schreber, 1776Class - Mammalia, Order - Carnivora, Family - Herpestidae (Bonaparte, 1845), Genus - Suricata (Desmarest,1804) (Wilson and Reeder 1993, ITIS Integrated Taxonomic Information System 2007, Catalogue of Life 2008)Score Sheet

SPECIES: Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)

Other common names include: Slender-tailed Meerkat , Suricate

Synonyms:

Suricata capensis

Suricata majoriae

Surikata viverrina

Viverra suricatta

Viverra tetradactyla

Mus zenik

(Wilson and Wilson 1976, van Staaden 1994).

Subspecies:

S. s. Iona

S. s. marjoriae

S. s. suricatta

(van Staaden 1994, ITIS Integrated Taxonomic Information System2007, Catalogue of Life 2008).

Species Description – One of the smallest members of the Herpestidae. The species has a long,slender body, long, thin legs, and a relatively long, thin, hairy tail. Head and body length 24.5-35 cm,tail length 17.5-25 cm, average weight is 800 g, ranging from 620-970 g. Males and females are ofsimilar size. Colour varies considerably throughout the distributional range, and may be a light grizzledgrey, tan, or silvery-brown. The coat is soft, with long guard hairs (15-20 mm over most the body; 30-40mm on the flanks). The rear portion of the back is marked with black transverse bars. The underfur isdark rufous in colour. The rounded, rather broad head, with a short, sharp-pointed muzzle ending in apink nose, is almost white in colour. The ears, the tip of the tail, and distinctive eye patches are black.The claws on the front feet are long (15 mm), curved and strong, ideally adapted to digging. Those onthe hind feet are much shorter, not more than about 8 mm (Estes 1991, van Staaden 1994, Nowak1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006).

General Information – Highly social animals, a Meerkat colony can consist of up to 30 individuals.Usually, however, groups contain two to three family units, and a total of 10-15 individuals. Each familycontains a pair of adults and their young. A group forages together, and take it in turns to baby-sit, trainyoungsters to hunt for food, and to act as sentinels, sitting on a mount to watch for potential predators.Sentinels will announce that they are on guarding duty with special vocalisations, and Meerkatsforaging for food will regularly stop to scan for predators, or to check if another individual is on guard. Ashrill, sharp bark from the group member on sentinel duty, and the rest of the pack dive into theburrows, then will cautiously stick their heads out to detect any danger before re-emerging. Aggressionis uncommon within a group, but the dominant female, who produces more than 80 % of the litters, willkill the young of subordinate females if they are born too close to the birth of her own (Clutton-Brock etal 1999, Manser 1999, Nowak 1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999, Manser et al 2001, Durrell WildlifeConservation Trust 2006, Kutsukaka and Clutton-Brock 2006).

Longevity – In the wild these animals are estimated to live up to 15 years. In captivity, one specimenwas 20.6 years of age when it died (HAGR Human Ageing Genomic Resources 2006).

Status –

1. Red List Category – Lower Risk Least Concern (LR/lc)

Rationale: Listed as ‘Lower Risk Least Concern’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.The species is not facing an immediate threat of extinction in the wild, providing enough of itshabitat remains intact. This species has a relatively large range, however some subspecies areunder more pressure from human encroachment than others (Mustelid Specialist Group 1996,Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006).

2. CITES listed Protection Status – Not listed (CITES 2007).

DATE OF ASSESSMENT: 01/05/2008Bird and Mammal Model used (Bomford 2008) using PC CLIMATE(Brown et al 2006, Bureau of Rural Sciences 2006)

The Risk Assessment Model

Models for assessing the risk that exotic vertebrates could establish in Australia have been developedfor mammals, birds (Bomford 2003, 2006, 2008), reptiles and amphibians (Bomford et al 2005,Bomford 2006, 2008). Developed by Dr Mary Bomford of the Bureau of Rural Sciences (BRS), themodel uses criteria that have been demonstrated to have significant correlation between a risk factor


and the establishment of populations of exotic species and the pest potential of those species that doestablish. For example, a risk factor for establishment is similarity in climate (temperature and rainfall)within the species’ distribution overseas and Australia. For pest potential, the species’ overseas peststatus is a risk factor. The model was originally published in ‘Risk Assessment for the Import andKeeping of Exotic Vertebrates in Australia’ (Bomford 2003) available onlinehttp://www.daff.gov.au/brs/land/feral-animals/management/risk . This model used the Apple Macapplication CLIMATE (Pheloung 1996) for climate matching.

The risk assessment model was revised and recalibrated ‘Risk Assessment for the Establishment ofExotic Vertebrates in Australia: Recalibrated and Refinement of Models’(Bomford 2006) and the climateapplication changed to PC CLIMATE software (Bureau of Rural Sciences 2006), available online athttp://affashop.gov.au/product.asp?prodid=13506. The most recent publication (Bomford 2008)includes updated instructions for using the exotic vertebrate risk assessment models and an additionalmodel for freshwater fish. A bird and mammal model for New Zealand has also been included.

Which models are being used for the assessments:

Birds and mammals have been assessed using the Australian Bird and Mammal Model (Bomford2008), pp 16-28, including both versions of stage B, models 1 (4 factors) and 2 (7 factors). All reptilesand amphibians were assessed using three models; the Australian Bird and Mammal Model (Bomford2008), including Model A, using 3 factors from stage B (pp 54-55), and Model B, using 7 factors fromstage B (pp 20), and the Australian Reptile and Amphibian Model (Bomford 2008), p 51-53. Therational for using additional models for reptiles and amphibians is to compare establishment risk ranksof the three models for a precautionary approach. If the models produce different outcomes for theestablishment potential of any reptile or amphibian, the highest ranked outcome should be used(Bomford 2008).

Climate Matching Using PC CLIMATESixteen climate parameters (variables) of temperature and rainfall are used to estimate the extent ofsimilarity between data from meteorological stations located in the species’ world distribution and inAustralia. Worldwide, data (source; worlddata_all.txt CLIMATE database) from approximately 8000locations are available for analysis. The number of locations used in an analysis will vary according tothe size of the species’ distribution. Data from approximately 762 Australian locations is used foranalysis.To represent the climate match visually, the map of Australia has been divided into 2875 grid squares,each measured in 0.5 degrees in both longitude and latitude.CLIMATE calculates a match for each Australian grid by comparing it with all of the meteorologicalstations within the species’ distribution (excluding any populations in Australia) and allocating a scoreranging from ten for the highest level match to zero for the poorest match. These levels of climatematch are used in the risk assessment for questions B1 (scores are summed to give a cumulativescore), C6, and C8. For a grid square on the Australian map to score highly, it must match closely all 16climatic variables of at least one meteorological station in the species’ distribution for each level ofclimate match. [The score for each grid is based on the minimum Euclidian distance in the 16-dimensional variable space between it and all stations in the species’ distribution. Each variable isnormalized by dividing it by its worldwide standard deviation.]

LITERATURE SEARCH TYPE AND DATE:

NCBI, CAB Direct, MEDLINE, Science Direct, Web of Knowledge(Zoological Records, Biological Abstracts), SCIRUS, Google Searchand Google Scholar 19/11/2007


FACTOR SCORE

STAGE A: RISKS POSED BY CAPTIVE OR RELEASED INDIVIDUALS

A1. Risk to people from individual escapees (0–2)Assess the risk that individuals of the species could harm people. (NB, this question onlyrelates to aggressive behaviour shown by escaped or released individual animals.Question C11 addresses the risk of harm from aggressive behaviour if the speciesestablishes a wild population).

Aggressive behaviour, size, plus the possession of organs capable of inflicting harm, suchas sharp teeth, claws, spines, a sharp bill, or toxin-delivering apparatus may enableindividual animals to harm people. Any known history of the species attacking, injuring orkilling people should also be taken into account. Assume the individual is not protectingnest or young. Choose one:

1 Animal that can make unprovoked attacks causing moderate injury (requiring medical attention) orsevere discomfort but is highly unlikely (few if any records) to cause serious injury (requiringhospitalisation if unprovoked

Meerkats have very sharp teeth and will approach people and bite them. The teeth arecapable of crushing small mammal bones (pers comm. Perth Zoo, August 2008).

A small mammal species, Meerkats have a sociable disposition and are easily tamed. Meerkats areoften kept in homes in rural areas of South Africa to kill mice and rats. Captive individuals are said toenjoy the warmth of snuggling close to their masters (Barnard 1979, van Staaden 1994, Nowak 1999).

A2. Risk to public safety from individual captive animals (0–2)Assess the risk that irresponsible use of products obtained from captive individuals of thespecies (such as toxins) pose a public safety risk (excluding the safety of anyone enteringthe animals’ cage/enclosure or otherwise coming within reach of the captive animals)

0 Nil or low risk (highly unlikely or not possible).

STAGE A. PUBLIC SAFETY RISK SCORE

SUM A1 TO A2 (0–4)

1

STAGE B: PROBABILITY ESCAPED OR RELEASED INDIVIDUALS WILL ESTABLISH FREE-LIVING POPULATION

Model 1: Four-factor model for birds and mammals (BOMFORD 2008)

B1. Degree of climate match between species overseas range andAustralia (1–6)

5 Climate Match Score = 1986 Very high climate match with Australia

Climate data from 82 locations (see species’ worldwide distribution map) were used to calculate theCMS. Overseas distribution southern Africa (see B3 for details).

[See above information on climate matching.]

B2. Exotic population established overseas (0–4) 0 No exotic population ever established

No reports found (Lever 1985, Long 2003).

B3. Overseas range size score (0–2)

< 1 = 0; 1 – 70 = 1; >70 = 2

0 Overseas range less than 1 million km2, estimated at 0.76 million km2. Includes current and past 1000years, natural and introduced range.

The species is restricted to the Southern African Subregion. (The other Meerkat species, the GreyMeerkat Paracynictis selous, is in a separate genus and has a more northerly distribution). The rangeincludes:

� The extreme south-west of Angola, in the Iona National Park

� Throughout Namibia, except for the northern and north-eastern parts of the country

� Throughout south-western Botswana, but are absent from the eastern parts of the country

� South Africa – In the Transvaal the species is confined to the southern parts of the province, notextending eastward as far as the Swaziland border; widespread throughout the Orange Free State;occur only marginally in the north-western parts of Natal; they occur widely in the Cape Province,but is absent from the extreme northwest and southeast and from just north of Cape Town to near


Port Elizabeth, along the coast and for some distance inland

(Estes 1991, Wilson and Reeder 1993, van Staaden 1994, Nowak 1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999,Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006).

B4. Taxonomic Class (0–1) 1 Mammal (ITIS Integrated Taxonomic Information System 2007, Catalogue of Life 2008).

B. ESTABLISHMENT RISK SCORE

SUM OF B1-4 (1–13)

6

Model 2: Seven-factor model for birds and mammals (BOMFORD 2008)

B5. Diet score (0–1) 1 Generalist with a broad diet of many food types

The diet is primarily insectivorous, but Meerkats will also take small vertebrates, eggs, and vegetablematter. Food preferences vary seasonally. They will actively forage near the burrow, turning overstones and digging in the sand and in crevices. Insects account for more than 80 % of the diet, andinclude members of Coleoptera (beetles), Lepidoptera (butterfiies and moths), Isoptera (termites),Orthoptera (crickets), and Diptera (flies). Arachnids (spiders and scorpions) account for 7 % of the diet,centipedes and millipedes 6 %, reptiles (mainly geckos, but also small snakes, including venomousspecies) and amphibians 4 %, and birds 1 %. In waterless areas they mainly obtain water by chewingTsama melons and digging up roots and tubers. In captivity, they will also eat a wide variety of fruit andvegetables. Captive Meerkats have also been reported to kill small mammals (Estes 1991, vanStaaden 1994, Nel and Kok 1999, Nowak 1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999, Brotherton et al 2001).

B6. Habitat score - undisturbed or disturbed habitat (0–1) 1 Can live in human-disturbed habitats

An open, arid country species, Meerkats are absent from desert and forest, and usually avoidmountainous terrain. They can be found in a variety of habitats, including savannah and open plains,alkaline pans, and the stony banks of dry water courses. While foraging they may wander to nearbyopen bare ground, scrub or woodland. They are also found on land heavily grazed by wild or domesticanimals, and frequently dig their warrens near to a water hole. Meerkats tend to prefer areas with hard,often stony or calcareous ground, which is good for warren construction. Unless they are thought to bea vector of rabies, Meerkats are usually protected by farmers, as they feed on lepidopteran (butterflyand moth) populations which damage agricultural crops and pasture (Estes 1991, van Staaden 1994,Nowak 1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006).

B7. Non-migratory behaviour (0–1) 1 Non-migratory or facultative migrant in its native range

Meerkats are diurnal animals, appearing shortly after sunrise. They will then sit at the entrances of theburrows on their haunches, to warm themselves in the early sunlight. Pack size varies from 2 to 30individuals, and the pack moves around within their territory. Movement within a home range is relatedto food availability, population density, flooding and predators. The home range size may be as large as15 km2. Individuals generally forage near the burrow, however a pack may travel up to 6 km during aday’s foraging. They normally return to the same burrow to sleep at night, however there may be two orthree such burrows within a home range in which they sleep, spaced 50-100 m apart, as well as manytemporary burrows and bolt holes. Some packs may occupy several burrow systems within a shorttime, but others move less frequently – there is evidence of a pack inhabiting a single burrow systemfor many generations over 15 years. Burrows are abandoned if they become infested with vermin or ifnearby food supplies run out. Breeding is not seasonal, but continuous, and dominant females deliverup to three litters per year (Estes 1991, van Staaden 1994, Nowak 1999, Skinner and Smithers 1999,Manser et al 2001, Manser and Bell 2004, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006, Russell et al 2007).


B. ESTABLISHMENT RISK SCORE

SUM OF B1-7 (1–16)

9

STAGE C: PROBABILITY AN ESTABLISHED SPECIES WILL BECOME A PEST

C1. Taxonomic group (0–4) 2 Mammal in one of the orders that have been demonstrated to have detrimental effects on preyabundance and/or habitat degradation

Order Carnivora, Family Herpestidae (ITIS Integrated Taxonomic Information System 2007, Catalogueof Life 2008).

C2. Overseas range size including current and past 1000 years,natural and introduced range (0–2)

0 Overseas range less than 10 million km2. Estimated at 0.76 million km2.

Overseas distribution southern Africa (Nowak 1999) (see B3 for details).

C3. Diet and feeding (0–3) 2 Mammal that is a strict carnivore but not arboreal

Meerkats are primarily insectivorous, feeding mostly on insects and other invertebrates (Nowak 1999)(see B5 for details).

C4. Competition with native fauna for tree hollows (0–2) 0 Does not use tree hollows

While unable to run or climb well, Meerkats are adept at digging, and excavate their own burrows.Burrow systems average about 5 m in diameter, have approximately 15 entrance holes (although somehave up to 90), and consist of two or three levels of tunnels extending to a dept of about 1.5 m, and areinterconnected with chambers of about 30 cm across. Entrance holes measure 15 cm in diameter.Burrow sites may be slightly elevated because of accumulation of excavated soil. The home range of acolony may contain up to 5 such burrows. Rather than excavating their own burrows, Meerkats oftenoccupy existing burrows prepared by other small mammals. The species is regularly found inassociation with the ground squirrel (Xerus inauris), and the solitary yellow mongoose (Cynictispenicillata). Meerkat occupation of Xerus burrows is usually without aggression and there is nocompetition for food or space. Colonies inhabiting stony areas live in crevices among rocks. Femalesgive birth to two to five young in the burrows. Pups are born with their ears and eyes closed, and areinitially entirely dependent on their lactating mother for nutrition (van Staaden 1994, Nowak 1999,Skinner and Smithers 1999, Brotherton et al 2001, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust 2006).

C5. Overseas environmental pest status (0–3)Has the species been reported to cause declines in abundance of any native species ofplant or animal or cause degradation to any natural communities in any country or region ofthe world?

0 This species has never been reported as an environmental pest in any country or region

No reports found. The Honolulu Zoo houses only male Meerkats. This is to ensure no possibility of anescaped group to establish a breeding population, which would pose a serious threat to the ecosystem(Honolulu Zoo 2008).

C6. Climate match to areas with susceptible native species orcommunities (0–5)Identify any native Australian animal or plant species or communities that could besusceptible to harm by the exotic species if it were to establish a wild population here.

5 One or more susceptible native species or ecological communities that are listed as vulnerable orendangered under the Australian Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity ConservationAct 1999 has a restricted geographical range that lies within the mapped area of the highest six climatematch classes for the exotic species being assessed

Reference for all vulnerable or endangered species (status noted in bold) (Dept of the EnvironmentWater Heritage and the Arts 2007, 2008). Susceptible Australian native species or natural communitiesthat could be threatened include:

Birds: Endangered – Chestnut-rumped Heathwren (Hylacola pyrrhopygia parkeri), Mallee Emu-wren(Stipiturus mallee); Vulnerable – Grey Grasswren (Amytornis barbatus barbatus), Thick-billedGrasswren (Amytornis textilis modestus), Purple-crowned Fairy-wren (Malurus coronatus coronatus),


Black-breasted Button-quail (Turnix melanogaster) (Barrett et al 2003, Christidis and Boles 2008).

Reptiles: Endangered – Slater's Skink (Egernia slateri slateri); Vulnerable – Five-clawed Worm-skink(Anomalopus mackayi), Pink-tailed Worm-lizard (Aprasia parapulchella), Striped Legless Lizard (Delmaimpar), Border Thick-tailed Gecko (Underwoodisaurus sphyrurus) (Cogger 2000).

Amphibians: Endangered – Southern Barred Frog (Mixophyes iteratus); Vulnerable – GrowlingGrass Frog (Litoria raniformis) (Cogger 2000).

Invertebrates: Bathurst Copper Butterfly (Paralucia spinifera) (vulnerable), Golden Sun Moth(Synemon plana) (critically endangered).

Communities: No listed vulnerable or endangered ecological communities likely to be at risk.

C7. Overseas primary production pest status (0–3)Has the species been reported to damage crops or other primary production in any countryor region of the world?

0 No reports of damage to crops or other primary production in any country or region

No reports found. Meerkats may be beneficial to primary production, in that they feed on lepidopteranpopulations which can damage agricultural crops and pasture (van Staaden 1994).

C8. Climate match to susceptible primary production (0–5)Assess Potential Commodity Impact Scores for each primary production commodity listedin Table 9, based on species’ attributes (diet, behaviour, ecology), excluding risk ofspreading disease which is addressed in Question C9.

0 Score = 0 (Bomford 2003, 2006)

See Commodity Scores Table – species does not have attributes making it capable of damaging any ofthe primary production commodities (van Staaden 1994).

C9. Spread disease (1–2) 2 All birds and mammals (likely or unknown effect on native species and on livestock and other domesticanimals).

C10. Harm to property (0–3) 0 $0

No reports of damage to property.

C11. Harm to people (0–5)Assess the risk that, if a wild population established, the species could cause harm to orannoy people. Aggressive behaviour, plus the possession of organs capable of inflictingharm, such as sharp teeth, tusks, claws, spines, a sharp bill, horns, antlers or toxin-delivering organs may enable animals to harm people. Any known history of the speciesattacking, injuring or killing people should also be taken into account (see Stage A, ScoreA1).

1 Very low risk

Small carnivorous mammal, wild animals are not regarded as dangerous (Barnard 1979).

Zoonoses: In the Orange Free State, South Africa, Meerkats are considered second in importanceonly to the Yellow Mongoose as a vector of rabies. Only 10 cases of rabid Meerkats attacking humansor domestic animals were documented in the last decade (van Staaden 1994). Information obtainedduring a study indicated that Meerkats, even when rabid, are relatively easy to cope with. They werefound to be neither very aggressive nor successful in their attacks on humans or other animals(Barnard 1979).

C. PEST RISK SCORE

SUM C 1 TO 11 (1–37)12

STAGE A. PUBLIC SAFETY RISK RANK – RISK TO PUBLIC SAFETY POSED BY

CAPTIVE OR RELEASED INDIVIDUALS

0 = Not dangerous; 1 = Moderately dangerous; ≥ 2 = Highly dangerous

1 MODERATELY DANGEROUS

STAGE B. ESTABLISHMENT RISK RANK – RISK OF ESTABLISHING A WILD

POPULATION

MODEL 1: FOUR-FACTOR MODEL FOR BIRDS AND MAMMALS (BOMFORD

2008)

6 MODERATE ESTABLISHMENT RISK


≤ 5 = low establishment risk; 6-8 = moderate establishment risk; 9-10 = serious

establishment risk; ≥11-13 = extreme establishment risk

STAGE B. ESTABLISHMENT RISK RANK – RISK OF ESTABLISHING A WILD

POPULATION

MODEL 2: SEVEN-FACTOR MODEL FOR BIRDS AND MAMMALS (BOMFORD

2008)

≤ 6 = low establishment risk; 7-11 = moderate establishment risk; 12-13 =

serious establishment risk; ≥14 = extreme establishment risk

9 MODERATE ESTABLISHMENT RISK

STAGE C. PEST RISK RANK - RISK OF BECOMING A PEST FOLLOWING

ESTABLISHMENT

< 9 = low pest risk; 9-14 = moderate pest risk; 15-19 = serious pest risk; > 19 =

extreme pest risk

12 MODERATE PEST RISK

VERTEBRATE PESTS COMMITTEE THREAT CATEGORY MODERATE – ENDORSED BY VPC

Median number of references per mammal, for all mammals assessed by (Massam et al

2010) (n=17)

Total number of references for this species

(median number for references for Public Safety Risk, Establishment Risk and Overseas

Environmental and Agricultural Adverse Impacts)

37

14 – less than the median number of mammal references were used for this assessment, indicating an increased

level of uncertainty.


World Distribution – Meerkat (Suricata suricatta), includes current and past 1000 years.Each red dot is a location where meteorological data was sourced for the climate analysis (see B1); faint grey dots are locations available for CLIMATE analysis but are not within thespecies distribution therefore not used. There is no introduced range for this species.


Map 1. Climate match between the world distribution of Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) and Australia for five match classes.

Colour onMap

Level of Match fromHighest (10) to Lowest (6)

No. GridSquares on

Map

Red 10 HIGH MATCH 0

Pink 9 HIGH MATCH 15

Dark Green 8 MOD MATCH 220

Mid Green 7 MOD MATCH 876

Lime Green 6 LOW MATCH 875

CMS= 1986


Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) Susceptible Australian Primary Production – Calculating Total Commodity Damage ScoreThe commodity value index scores in this table are derived from Australian Bureau of Statistics 1999 – 2000 data. The values will require updating if significant change has occurred inthe value of the commodity (Bomford 2008).

Industry Commodity Value Index 1(CVI based on 2005- 06 data)

Potential CommodityImpact Score (PCIS 0-3)

Climate Match toCommodity Score (CMCS

0–5)

Commodity Damage Score(CDS columns 2 X 3 X 4)

Sheep (includes wool and sheep meat) 5 0 0 0Cattle (includes dairy and beef) 11 0 0 0Timber (includes native and plantation forests) 10 0 0 0Cereal grain (includes wheat, barley sorghum etc) 8 0 0 0Pigs 1 0 0 0Poultry and eggs 2 0 0 0Aquaculture (includes coastal mariculture) 2 0 0 0Cotton 1 0 0 0Oilseeds (includes canola, sunflower etc) 1 0 0 0Grain legumes (includes soybeans) 1 0 0 0Sugarcane 1 0 0 0Fruit (includes wine grapes) 4 0 0 0Vegetables 3 0 0 0Other livestock (includes goats, deer, camels, rabbits) 0.5 0 0 0Bees (included honey, beeswax and pollination) 0.5 0 0 0Other crops and horticulture (includes nuts tobacco andflowers etc)

1 0 0 0

Total Commodity Damage Score (TCDS) 0

[Table 9 Rational Potential Commodity Impact Score (0-3)Assess Potential Commodity Impact Scores for each primary production commodity listed in Table 9, based on species’ attributes (diet, behaviour, ecology), excluding risk of spreading disease which isaddressed in Question C9, and pest status worldwide as:0. Nil (species does not have attributes to make it capable of damaging this commodity)1. Low (species has attributes making it capable of damaging this or similar commodities and has had the opportunity but no reports or other evidence that it has caused damage in any country or region2. Moderate–serious (reports of damage to this or similar commodities exist but damage levels have never been high in any country or region and no major control programs against the species have ever

been conducted OR the species has attributes making it capable of damaging this or similar commodities but has not had the opportunity)3. Extreme (damage occurs at high levels to this or similar commodities and/or major control programs have been conducted against the species in any country or region and the listed commodity would be

vulnerable to the type of harm this species can cause).Climate Match to Commodity Score (0–5)• None of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest eight climate match classes (ie classes 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 and 3) = 0• Less than 10% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest eight climate match classes = 1• Less than 10% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest six climate match classes (ie classes 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 and 5) = 2• Less than 50% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest six climate match classes AND less than 10% of the commodity is produced in areas

where the species has a climate match within the highest three climate match classes (ie classes 10, 9 and 8) = 3• Less than 50% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest six climate match classes BUT more than 10% of the commodity is produced in areas

where the species has a climate match within the highest three climate match classes = 4• OR More than 50% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest six climate match classes BUT less than 20% of the commodity is produced in areas

where the species has a climate match within the highest three climate match classes = 4More than 20% of the commodity is produced in areas where the species has a climate match within the highest three climate match classes OR overseas range unknown and climate match to Australiaunknown = 5.]


Map 2. Climate match between the world distribution of Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) and Australia for eight match classes.

Colour on Map Level of Match fromHighest (10) to Lowest (3)

No. GridSquareson Map

Red 10 HIGH MATCH 0

Pink 9 HIGH MATCH 15

Dark Green 8 HIGH MATCH 220

Mid Green 7 MOD MATCH 876

Lime Green 6 MOD MATCH 875

Yellow 5 MOD MATCH 414

Blue 4 LOW MATCH 153

Light blue 3 LOW MATCH 136


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bin/sprat/public/publiclookupcommunities.pl [Date accessed:15/01/2008].Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (2006). Meerkat species factsheet. Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust. http://www.durrell.org/Animals/Slender-Tailed-Meerkat/

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date:09/04/2010].Honolulu Zoo (2008). Meerkat. http://www.honoluluzoo.org/meerkat.htm [Access date:01/05/2008].ITIS Integrated Taxonomic Information System (2007). Integrated Taxonomic Information. www.itis.gov [Access date:31/01/2008].Kutsukaka N and Clutton-Brock TH (2006). Aggression and submission reflect reproductive conflict between females in cooperatively breeding meerkats Suricata

suricatta. Behav Ecol Sociobiol, 59:541-548.Lever C (1985). Naturalised Mammals of the World. Longman, London.Long JL (2003). Introduced Mammals of the World: Their History, Distribution and Influence. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Australia.Manser B, Bell MB and Fletcher LB (2001). The information that receivers extract from alarm calls in suricates. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 268:2485-2491.Manser MB (1999). Response of foraging group members to sentinel calls in suricates, Suricata suricatta. Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 266:1013-1019.Manser MB and Bell MB (2004). Spatial representation of shelter locations in meerkats, Suricata suricatta. Animal Behaviour, 68(Part 1):151-157.Massam M, Kirkpatrick W and Page A (2010). Assessment and prioritisation of risk for 40 exotic animal species Department of Agriculture and Food, Western

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Vertebrate Pests Committee Threat Categories (Natural Resource Management Standing Committee 2004)

VPC Threat CategoryA species’ VPC Threat Category is determined from the various combinations of its three risk ranks; (A) Public safety risk rank, (B) Establishment risk rank,(C) Pest risk rank.B. EstablishmentRisk Rank1

C. Pest Risk Rank1 A. Public Safety Risk Rank Threat Category

Extreme Extreme Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeExtreme High Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeExtreme Moderate Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeExtreme Low Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeHigh Extreme Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeHigh High Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeHigh Moderate Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous SeriousHigh Low Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous SeriousModerate Extreme Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ExtremeModerate High Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous SeriousModerate Moderate Highly Dangerous SeriousModerate Moderate Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ModerateModerate Low Highly Dangerous SeriousModerate Low Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ModerateLow Extreme Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous Serious

Low High Highly Dangerous, Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous SeriousLow Moderate Highly Dangerous SeriousLow Moderate Moderately Dangerous or Not Dangerous ModerateLow Low Highly Dangerous SeriousLow Low Moderately Dangerous ModerateLow Low Not Dangerous Low

1 ‘Establishment Risk’ is referred to as the ‘Establishment Likelihood’ and ‘Pest Risk’ is referred to as the ‘Establishment Consequences’ by the NaturalResource Management Standing Committee (2004).

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