Richard Collins: Pause to reflect on history of cats in Cyprus

A ccording to the country’s Cat Protection & Welfare Society (Catpaws), there are 1.5m domestic cats in Cyprus, an island with only 1.2m human residents. During a visit last month, 14 pussies converged on us at a cat feeding station near the ancient ruins of Amathus; they thought my wife was one of the dedicated cat ladies who feed them.

According to the country’s Cat Protection & Welfare Society (Catpaws), there are 1.5m domestic cats in Cyprus, an island with only 1.2m human residents. During a visit last month, 14 pussies converged on us at a cat feeding station near the ancient ruins of Amathus; they thought my wife was one of the dedicated cat ladies who feed them.

Felines are more conspicuous than birds in Cyprus; only grey crows and feral pigeons, too big for cats to attack, are really common. Even sparrows are scarce. Are cats partly to blame for this avian poverty?