Social media highlights the overlooked impact of cats on arthropods

The severe impact of domestic cats on vertebrate biodiversity is unequivocal. However, cats are generalist predators that also hunt various invertebrate taxa, yet we are still far from understanding the impacts of these predators on arthropod populations. Here, we analyzed records from social media to explore which arthropods are most preyed upon by domestic cats in urban environments.
Using the search algorithms of two online platforms, iStock and TikTok, we analyzed >17,000 photos and videos, which yielded 550 records of predation events by domestic cats. We examined these images to identify the orders of arthropods most frequently preyed upon by cats. We compared our findings with data from a recent global synthesis of academic papers quantifying the diet of domestic cats.
In total, we recorded 14 distinct arthropod orders killed by domestic cats. Orthoptera was the most frequently preyed upon order, accounting for 20.7% of the records. Hemiptera (14.5%) and Blattodea (14.4%) were..., Data collection
We collected data on TikTok and iStock between March and April 2024. To gather data from both platforms, we used search terms related to cat predation on arthropods (see details below) and only selected records—whether photos or videos—that depicted: (i) cats consuming arthropods, (ii) cats hunting or chasing arthropods or (iii) cats interacting with arthropods (e.g., cats attempting to capture, stalking, or preparing to attack an arthropod). To allow for precise identification of the arthropod at the taxonomic level of order in each photo, we only considered photos and videos where the prey killed or targeted by the cat was clearly visible. Photos and videos with barely visible prey or those that did not show the prey were discarded. We also removed photos and videos that appeared manipulated, showed significant human interference (e.g., a human offering prey to a cat), or were taken in potentially non-urban environments. Since iStock and TikTok have different search me..., # Data from: Social media highlights the overlooked impact of cats on arthropods

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.k98sf7mks](10.5061/dryad.k98sf7mks)

## Description of the data and file structure

The data set is presented in a “.csv” file, which includes 550 records of arthropod predation events by domestic cats obtained from photos and videos available on two social media platforms, *iStock* and *TikTok*. For each record, we present (i) the social media where the photo or video was found, (ii) the search language used to find the photo or video, and (iii) the taxonomic identification (Order level) of the attacked prey.

### Files and variables

#### File: data_Alexandre_Costa-Pereira.csv

**Description:** The dataset includes 550 records of predation events by domestic cats obtained from photos and videos available on two social media platforms, *iStock* and *TikTok*.

##### Variables

* social media: the social media platform in which the record was obtained; two categories: TikTok or i...,