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Introduced - Cats are an introduced species in Australia, they were brought to Australia when they were kept as ratters on convict ships.

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Killers - Unfortunately, the feral cat population has gotten out of control and experts warn they may be responsible for the extinction of 30 native marsupial species.

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Fence - The Australian Wildlife Conservancy has built the world’s longest feral-cat-proof fence in an attempt to prevent wild felines from wiping out endangered native marsupials and birds.

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Conservation - Australian Wildlife Conservancy is the charity spearheading the campaign and is seeking public donations to help continue with the re-wilding effort.

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Re-wild - They have managed to clear a vast 44km area north of Alice Springs of feral cats, so far.

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Reintroduce - They will reintroduce Australian endangered marsupials back into the cordoned off space such as the western quoll.

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The worst - Atticus Fleming, chief executive of the Australian Wildlife Conservancy spoke to The Financial Times saying: "Australia has the worst mammal extinction rate in the world.”

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Extinction - He continued: "We have lost more than 30 native mammals since settlement, compared to one native mammal extinction in North America.”

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Diversity - Australia has a unique biodiversity and one of only 17 countries that account for an estimated 70% of the world’s plant and animal species.

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Enironmental - However, due to land clearing, farming and introduction of non-native species the native animals have suffered greatly.

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Vast - Introduced creatures such as cats, foxes and rabbits have gone feral and the killing of native species across the vast continent has been out of control.

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Electric - The 44km electric fence borders a wildlife sanctuary.

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Mala - Animals like the mala, a type of small wallaby, will be reintroduced to a 9,400 hectare cat-free zone at Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary, 350km north-west of Alice Springs.

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Zone - "There were about 50 or 60 cats in that area alone, and they would eat over 70,000 native animals a year," chief executive Atticus Fleming told the BBC.

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Infastucture - He continued: "This fence is one of the most important conservation infrastructure pieces in Australia."

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Mammals - "For the first time, a vast landscape in central Australia will once again be home to a diversity and abundance of mammals similar to that which existed prior to the arrival of European settlers," the AWC said in a media statement.

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Bilbies - The rare golden bilbie will be one of the native marsupials re-introduced to the area.

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Plan - Despite the feral cat population casing untold damage, Australia doesn't have a particularly effective plan to manage the problem.

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Net - The construction of the 44km fence required 35,000 pickets, 1,600km of plain wire and more than 500km of netting.

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Next - The next phase of the proposed plan will see the fence stretch more than 185km protecting 70,000 hectares of land.

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Study - A recent study, published in the journal Biological Conversation estimates feral cats kill 316 million birds a year.

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Domestic - It's not just the feral cats causing loss, pet cats kill 61 million birds annually. More than 99% killed are native.

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First - It was the first nationwide study of its kind to look at the impact cats were having on Australia’s birds.

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Night - If you are a cat owner, it is advised to keep your cat inside during the evening in order to help preserve the local native population.

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Species - The study also revealed that 338 species of native birds were killed during the observation period, including 71 threatened species.

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Cute - Your kitty may look cute, but its a highly skilled hunter when left to its own devices.

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Responsible - Assoc Prof Sarah Legge who authored the study said to The Guardian: “Responsible pet owners can help reduce the impact of domestic cats by desexing them and keeping them indoors or in a cat run.”

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Risk - Birds most at risk from cats are small-to-medium sized and or ground nesting types and those found on remote islands or arid areas.

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Scary - The study estimated there are about 11 billion native birds across the country, suggesting that cats kill about 4% of the population annually.

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