Cats might treat your home like they're the boss and you're the pet, but is it going too far to call them an "invasive alien species"?
Government-backed researchers in Poland just triggered the internet by slapping that label on the common house cat, citing the cat's origins in the Middle East and their love for eating small creatures.
Wojciech Solarz, a biologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences, recently announced that his team had dubbed cats an "invasive alien species" in the country's biology databases, reported the Associated Press.
And he's been getting backlash ever since.
Cat lovers and owners from across the world have been shredding Solarz online, with many ripping him as out-of-touch.
One Twitter user even said that the "Polish biologist has to win the clueless award of the year" for his decision.
\u201cThis Polish biologist has to win the clueless award of the year. Cat people are not amused and Leela the Siamese Snowshoe is pissed. - Polish science institute lists domestic cats as "invasive alien species - https://t.co/Mtjl6I3zal\u201d— Lauren Weinstein (@Lauren Weinstein) 1658885978
Solarz made the decision in concert with other researchers, according to the Polish Academy of Sciences, but he's still getting a lot of the flak for it.
Some critics even hinted that if we're going to start labelling various "invasive alien species," we should start with humans.
"But technological 'advancements' such as cars, roadworks, house building, pesticide spraying & air travel, wind turbines and the rise of A.I. will all be fine for local wildlife," tweeted another user. "Nope. Let's just blame the cats instead."
\u201cBut technological 'advancements' such as cars, roadworks, house building, pesticide spraying & air travel, wind turbines and the rise of A.I. will all be fine for local wild life.\n\nNope. Let's just blame the cats instead.\n\nThe WEF are the invasive species\n\nhttps://t.co/h4HZSDe1on\u201d— Pusskins \ud83d\udc3e (@Pusskins \ud83d\udc3e) 1658904404
Another tweeted: "Cats are an "Invasive Alien Species"??? Gimme a break Poland."
Solarz told the Associated Press that roughly 1,800 other animals are featured on the database, and people have had no issues with most of those species being on the list. He also said that cats meet "100%" of the criteria for being an invasive alien species.
One of the biggest factors was apparently that house cats hunt and kill a lot, and can have an impact on biodiversity.
Solarz faced off with cat-loving author Dorota Suminska over the issue on Poland's TVN channel recently, and she ripped into him during the segment.
"Ask if a man is on the list of non-invasive alien species," Suminska said, per the AP.
Solarz argued back that cats are responsible for the death of 140 million birds in Poland alone.
"I have a dog, but I don't have anything against cats," he added.
But cat people definitely have something against him now.
Cats Were Just Named An 'Invasive Alien Species' & The Internet Isn't Taking It Well
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