“If we don’t do something about the predation pressure, we will lose more species,” she said.

Dr Stobo-Wilson said there had been numerous successful programs that had curbed fox and cat populations – with native species bouncing back, but more needed to be done. For example, from July 1 this year, new cats in certain Canberra suburbs will need to be contained to their owner’s property or on a leash. Other initiatives include introducing baiting programs or feral-free zones, of which NSW has seven.

The NSW government is releasing 14 red-tailed phascogales into one of the feral-free zones in the state’s south-west this week. The small tree-dwelling marsupial is listed as extinct in the state, occupying less than 1 per cent of its former range, with foxes and cats part of the main cause of its decline.

“The phascogale is the eighth mammal listed as extinct in NSW that has been returned to NSW national parks in the past three years,” NSW Environment Minister James Griffin said. “Within a few years, we hope to remove at least 10 mammals from the NSW extinct list – the first time that will have happened anywhere in the world.”

“Statewide there will soon be 65,000 hectares of feral predator-free areas on national park estate, including this site at the Mallee Cliffs. They’re being established as an essential part of the NSW government’s conservation strategy, aiming to prevent extinction.”

Dr Stobo-Wilson said events such as bushfires or floods can actually boost cat and fox numbers, providing them with more food sources.

In NSW, the latest State of Environment report found that feral cats had impacted 117 species and foxes had impacted 111 species. The animals were also the main reason animals had become extinct in the state.

ANU ecologist professor David Lindenmayer said it was not just foxes and cats that were impacting the survival rate of native species: introduced pests such as rabbits, horses, camels and deer added extra pressures.

“In the last 10 years, Australia has lost three species of mammals. It’s not as if the rate of loss is slowing, in many cases that decline is increasing,” he said. “When we combined good management with good science you can have good outcomes, but that means you need to invest properly, and you need to have good science associated with it.”

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Professor Lindenmayer said that introduced species were only one part of the additional pressures that native animals were facing alongside land clearing, natural disasters and ongoing construction of fossil fuel projects.

Last week, a national audit found the federal Environment Department did not know if its plans to halt Australia’s wave of flora and fauna extinctions were working. The department oversees the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, which requires the government to identify threatened species and make plans to help them recover.

“There is limited evidence that desired outcomes are being achieved, due to the department’s lack of monitoring, reporting and support for the implementation of conservation advice, recovery plans and threat abatement plans,” the report said. “Failings identified in previous audits had not been fixed and there is “no schedule or plan for future evaluations”.

“Most recommendations from past evaluations and reviews have not yet been implemented,” the report said.

Conservation director for the Invasive Species Council James Trezise said there was no silver bullet to solving the invasive species problem. He said technology would play a key role in controlling population numbers, as would tight biosecurity measures.

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He said that invasive species posed a massive economic issue for the government, but one that could not be ignored.

“We don’t have a full understanding of the total spread of invasive species or the total threat posed by them,” Trezise said. “In many cases, we find out when it’s too late.”