Alexander Heights – cats between street trees and Koondoola bushland

How layout shapes cat movement

Alexander Heights sits between Mirrabooka Avenue, Hepburn Avenue and Marangaroo Drive, with local streets stepping down towards Marangaroo Golf Course and Koondoola Regional Bushland on the suburb edge.[S5]

Back fences along streets such as Aylesford Drive and Highclere Boulevard meet pocket parks, drainage lines and the golf course fringe with little buffer. When gaps open at the fence base, cats move quickly from rear yards onto cut-through paths that lead towards the bushland edge and fairway margins.

Wildlife most exposed

• Understorey and mulch strips along the Koondoola bushland boundary can support small ground mammals; quenda are recorded in urban bushland reserves across Perth’s northern corridor, including banksia woodland similar to nearby reserves.[S1][S5]
• Street trees and golf-course tree belts provide foraging and perching habitat for urban honeyeaters and other small birds that move between bushland remnants and gardens.[S5]
• Regional movement data show Carnaby’s black cockatoos using the Swan Coastal Plain, including coastal and inland woodlands north of Perth; flocks cross over suburbs such as Alexander Heights as they move between feeding and roost sites.[S2]

Common cat lifestyles

• Fence-base slip cats – move through summer shrinkage gaps where back fences meet turf or garden beds along streets facing Koondoola bushland or local parks.
• Gate-lift cats – use lifted side gates on sloping driveways along Mirrabooka Avenue and Marangaroo Drive to reach verge trees and cross into park strips.
• Dusk-pressure cats – follow the shadow line from rear patios to the golf course edge, leaving yards at last light when people and dog walkers also concentrate near park entries.
• Pine-belt / creek-line scent followers – track scents along drainage reserves and planted corridors that run towards Koondoola Regional Bushland and nearby playing fields.

High-risk zones (specific)

• Back fences and side gates backing onto Marangaroo Golf Course near Aylesford Drive, where a single gap can lead directly out onto fairway edges used by foraging birds and ground fauna.
• Properties along the Koondoola Regional Bushland interface, where rear yards meet the conservation boundary with no road buffer.
• Drainage corridors running between local parks and Marangaroo Drive, which act as narrow movement lanes for both cats and wildlife after rain.

Cat rules that apply

All cats in Alexander Heights fall under the Cat Act 2011 (WA), which requires identification, registration and sterilisation, and gives local governments powers to manage nuisance and environmental impact.[S3]

The City of Wanneroo Cats Local Law 2023 sets limits on cat numbers, identifies prohibited and sensitive areas and provides an approval system for keeping additional cats in specified circumstances.[S4] Local information urges owners to keep cats at home and away from bushland reserves that support native fauna.[S4]

Why containment fits Alexander Heights

In Alexander Heights, a gap at the fence base on the bushland or golf-course side can lead directly from a rear yard into a shared corridor used by walkers, dogs, small mammals and birds along the Koondoola and Marangaroo edges.

Better options for cats

• Dusk indoors when dog walkers and wildlife use the same park entries.
• Check fence bases in summer where turf pulls back from concrete or limestone footings.
• Use cat netting where back fences meet golf-course or bushland boundaries, or where drainage easements run behind the property.

Helpful links

• City of Wanneroo – Owning a cat (registration, limits, local law): https://www.wanneroo.wa.gov.au/info/20006/animals_and_pets/70/owning_a_cat
• Department of Local Government – Laws for responsible cat owners in WA: https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/local-government/community/cats-and-dogs/laws-for-responsible-cat-owners
• DBCA – Living with quenda: https://www.dbca.wa.gov.au/media/2147/download
• Back to Wanneroo: https://www.kitty-safe.com.au/cat-safety-network-2/city-of-wanneroo-coastal-corridor-wetlands-bushland-roaming-cats/

Sources

• [S1] DBCA – Living with Quenda (Isoodon fusciventer) factsheet.[S1]
• [S2] BirdLife Australia – Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo profile and Perth–Peel roost data.[S2]
• [S3] WA Government – Cat Act 2011 overview and guidance for local governments.[S3]
• [S4] City of Wanneroo – Cats Local Law 2023 and owning-a-cat information.[S4]
• [S5] City of Wanneroo – Urban forest and vegetation cover strategy for northern suburbs.[S5]