Dressing Your Cat In Ridiculous Scrunchies Will Help The Environment, Says Science

You can probably tell a lot about a society by the way they talk about their scientific discoveries.

For example, earlier this week a study was released which suggests Australia’s food production could be in serious trouble if steps aren’t taken to fight climate change. No one really cared. Similarly, scientists in Queensland may have found a new technique to restore memories to people with Alzheimer’s disease. You probably didn’t hear about it.

But now, a PhD student out of Western Australia has made a major discovery related to cats and hair accessories from the ’80s and you’re reading all about it. Who even are we? Why do we do this to ourselves? How do we work towards self-betterment?

Oh well, for now let’s lean into the mayhem.

As the ABC report, a new study has been released this week which suggests dressing your cat up in ridiculous scrunchies has a positive impact on the environment.

After observing more than 100 cats over a two-year period, Murdoch University researcher Catherine Hall found the bright colours of the accessory successfully scared away the majority of native wildlife; the amount of large prey caught by the cats when wearing a scrunchie reduced by 54 percent.

“Bright colours are very noticeable to songbirds, they should see the cats further away, allowing them to escape earlier,” Hall said. “Because it’s based on colour and vision, cats won’t be able to learn to make it stop working.”

In case you didn’t already know: cats are assholes.

In 2013, Australian Wildlife released a shocking report that claimed feral cats kill 75 million native animals every night including a broad range of birds, reptiles and amphibians. Following on from this, The Conversation have claimed that cats have been at least partially responsible for “the extinction of at least 20 mammal species and sub-species”. Australian Geographic concur with those figures, going as far to suggest it may be time to reassess our love for the animals; in the US cats are now “the biggest human-linked cause of death for native animals, with a bigger impact than habitat destruction, pesticides [and] pollution,” they wrote.

This has even led The Oatmeal to take them on.

While the main problem is obviously with feral cats, any step to lessen the impact your pet has is definitely a good thing. And, because of this, the results of the study are garnering a whole heap of praise all around the world.

Frankly, the scrunchie plan creates better environmental sustainability while simultaneously gifting you with a tiny adorable jester. What’s not to love?

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Images via BirdsBeSafe.