A Very Important Cat Event

Two Amur leopards have been born in captivity at the Wildlife Heritage Foundation (WHF) in Smarden, Kent, UK. Why is this an important world cat event? There are thought to be about 35-40 Amur leopards in the wild in the far east of Russia, in a region called Primorskii Krai through which the River Amur flows. It is also the region where the Amur tiger lives (Siberian tiger).

I think this figure of 35-40 is actually incorrect. It comes from newspapers and is the conventional view but a more scientific and modern assessment is 12 Amur leopards in the wild. Yes, exactly 12. Strange isn't it? 

Add to that the 100-140 Amur leopards in captivity in Europe as part of a European breeding program and you have about 150 Amur leopards in the world excluding those in America and other continents. It seems there are about 200-300 in captivity in total worldwide. They are the rarest big cats in the world.

It would seem doubtful that the wild Amur leopard can survive because of genetic diversity - it is too low and inbreeding sets in causing sterility. Habitat loss is a major threat. The leopard has the widest range of all the wild cats. The Amur leopard is one of 9 subspecies of the leopard.

It is sad to think that these cute little cubs will never live in the wild. See a page on the leopard.

Interested? Why do leopards have spots?

Chinese Desert Cat

This is a mobile version of a larger article on the Chinese desert cat, which is little known. Only recently was it classified as a subspecies of the wildcat (Driscoll et al 2007 based in genetic analysis).

It has the appearance of the cats of the species Felis silvestris. It looks like a wildcat, that is the species of cat called, "wildcat". They also look somewhat like domestic cats. They should because the domestic cat is a domesticated wildcat (African and Eurasian).

Name

• Chinese mountain cat
• Chinese desert cat
• Chinese steppe cat
• Scientific name: Felis silvestris bieti or Felis silvestris ssp. bieti. These are the same, just different ways of presenting the name. A scientist named, Milne-Edwards, first classified this species of cat in 1892. He classified it Felis bieti.

Description

Chinese desert cat - photograph copyright Jim Sanderson.

The Chinese desert cat looks similar to a very large domestic cat that is wild in appearance and which has a ticked yellow-gray coat and a thick, fluffy banded tail with a black tip.

It has lighter undersides and brown stripes on the cheeks. The chin is white. The skull is broad.

Distribution

This map gives an indication as to its distribution. It is a little imprecise because, as I said, little is known about this cat. The map is based on the IUCN Red List™ map.

It inhabits China (including Tibetan Plateau) and Mongolia. China includes Tibet. China has sovereignty over Tibet.

Habitat

This cat's name is misleading as it lives in rocky terrain and not desert as we know it. But the habitat includes semi-desert and alpine meadows and montane forest. I have a picture: of the Tibetan Plateau:

Tibetan Plateau - Photograph copyright reurinkjan

Prey

Primary prey is the rock rabbit (pika). It also feeds on rodents generally, lizards and birds. Rodents make up 90% of prey.

Pika - Photograph copyright reurinkjan

Reproduction

Mating happens from January to March.  Births are usually in May. Burrows are used as birth dens. Litters: 2-4 offspring.

Status

Listed as Vulnerable by IUCN Red List™ due to loss of prey the pika which is poisoned by locals. The Chinese desert cat is rare and populations are declining. It is also hunted for its skin.

See larger article.

Rare Wild Cats

A list of rare wild cats. The Iberian lynx and Iriomote cat are probably the rarest wild cats. How do you judge what is a rare wild cat when you don't know the population sizes of the wildcats? Rarity is assessed on how few there are in the world. However, with respect to all wild cats we don't know precisely how many there are.

We know that some wild cat species are more numerous than others. There are more bobcats that tigers for instance. Also, when the population becomes very low scientists do more research as the species nears extinction in the wild. This provides more data on numbers. It is shame we can't take better proactive steps to protect wildcats.

These are the rare wild cats on my assessment - numbers are cats in the wild. The links have been selected. There are many more. Please start here.

• Bay cat - very secretive and lives in the virgin forests of Borneo that are being logged at a rapid rate. Don't have numbers.
• Siberian tiger - 400 approx. left in the wild. Inbreeding problems. Population is stable.
• Asiatic lion - lives in the GIR Forest in Northwest India. 359 left. Inbreeding problems?
• Scottish wild cat - 400 approx. left in wild and we are not sure how many of these are purebred.
• South China tiger - I say this cat is extinct but others will disagree. Whatever - it is extremely rare or extinct.
• Sumatran tiger - 100-400 left.
• Iriomote cat - subspecies of leopard cat - extremely rare - about 100 left. Lives on the Japanese island of Iriomote.
• Andean cat - estimated 2,000 left. Persecuted by locals and loss of habitat and prey.
• Iberian lynx - almost extinct. Population 84-123 (2009). Lives in Southern Portugal and Spain. Hunted to near extinction and loss of prey.

That is my list compiled out my of my head more or less. The white tiger is not a subspecies of tiger and is only in captivity (highly inbred).