This paper presents the first photographic record of a possible interspecific killing event between a North African wildcat Felis lybica lybica and a Blanford’s fox Vulpes cana. The camera trap image was taken in the area locally known as Wadi Thurabah, 50 km NNW of the town of Al Bahah in the Sarawat mountains of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Our paper indicates spatial and temporal interactions between the North African wildcat and the Blanford’s fox in the Kingdom. It also contributes to a better understanding of their interspecific relationship, and of the North African wildcat’s potential hunting behaviours.

Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx is an elusive species, with limited information on its distribution, habitat use and ecology in Iran. Many knowledge gaps remain about the status of this species in the country. Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari Province in the last study on Eurasian lynx (Mousavi et al. 2016), had no confirmed presence record (C1) of lynx. However, in January 2017, the first photographic record of this elusive cat in Sheyda Protected Area was achieved by the rangers. Additionally, on 15 March 2020, the carcass of this cat was observed by mountaineers in Zardkuh-e- Bakhtiari, providing the second hard fact record of Eurasian lynx in this province. Further researche into geographic distribution, corridors, threats and conservation needs of Eurasian lynx in this province is recommended.

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Globally different levels of human disturbances influence the existence of the tiger Panthera tigris. In India, the Manas Tiger Reserve MTR is a good example to support this statement. After a period of long ethno-political turmoil in the region, for the first time a tiger has been camera trapped in Ripu Reserve Forest (western buffer of MTR). This photographic evidence clearly highlights the potential of this IndoBhutan trans-boundary habitat as one of the most important recovery sites for this species. Although, this entire western buffer may still be categorised as vulnerable due to insufficient baseline information, limited research, and protection, the core area (Manas National Park) of the tiger reserve has already achieved a recovery rate of more than 240% in the past ten years. To enhance the conservation efforts in this connected landscape including Manas, Phibsoo, Royal Manas National Park (via biological corridor), and Buxa forest complexes, in-depth research is necessary.

We report the first records of Asiatic wildcat Felis lybica ornata and rusty-spotted cat Prionailurus rubiginosus from Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India. Both species were photo captured during a camera trap survey as a part of an ongoing study on the ecology of tigers and other co-predators. These new records warrant further conservation interventions for small carnivores in a human dominated landscape.

The jungle cat Felis chaus is one of the 10 small cat species found in India and most common cat which is widely distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent. Yet little is known about the ecology of this cat, although relatively better studied than other small cats in India, especially in the human dominated agricultural landscape in India. We provide evidence of diurnal and crepuscular activity of this small cat, observed opportunistically during November 2019 and February 2020, from the southeastern part of the National Capital Region NCR, India. The observations, although opportunistic and few, are important owing to occur in a dynamic and continuously disturbed human-dominated agricultural landscape

The Asiatic lion Panthera leo leo occurs in the Gir and Greater Gir landscape of the Gujarat state in India. The population and distribution have shown a steady increase due to the Government’s commitment and public support. This growth necessitates conservation action to ensure the long term survival of lions in the landscape. We used collars on 22 lions (12 females, 10 males) to understand movement patterns and aid in devising management and conservation strategies across the multi-use Asiatic Lion Landscape. The radio-collared individuals’ annual home ranges ranged from 15 to 415 km² (mean = 156 km²), with prime adult male ranges 2.3 times larger than female ranges and a non-significant difference between the seasons.

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We report the first ever photographic evidence of fishing cat Prionailurus viverrinus from Panna Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, central India. The animal was photocaptured during camera trap sampling as a part of the on-going study on the ecology of reintroduced tiger and co-predators. This new record triggers the conservation importance of small felids in protected areas.

The fishing cat Prionailurus viverrinus is a small wild cat that is often associated with water-rich habitats such as wetlands and mangroves. In Colombo, Sri Lanka, the presence of fishing cats in the city’s urban wetlands was confirmed in 2004, but no data was available after that. In this follow-up study, my team and I confirmed the presence of fishing cats within the city proper in 2015 and again in 2017, making this the first photographic record of fishing cats in a hyper urban landscape.

The Indian leopard Panthera pardus fusca is Critically Endangered in Bangladesh. Presence of the country’s second largest cat is based on speculations and its population is often considered to be unviable. No specific studies on Bangladesh’s leopard population have been conducted. Thus, scant empirical data for this range country exists. Here, we provide a review on leopard occurrences in the country between 2008 and 2020. We searched media reports and peer-reviewed publications, and compiled verifiable and geo-spatially extrapolatable records. Over the past 13 years, we documented 21 confirmed incidents; nine of which were outcomes of humanleopard conflicts. In north-western Bangladesh, seven leopards strayed from North Bengal, India, a conflict hotspot for the species, into the country. Northern and northeastern Bangladesh had one incident each. These regions have forests bordering the Indian States of Meghalaya and Tripura, which are considered as possible extant leopard range. We noted five seizure records describing confiscation of three skins and four live specimens. We found seven encounters in the wild, all from southeastern Bangladesh: five from the Chattogram Hill Tracts CHT and two from Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf Peninsula. We also noted rapid degradation in the peninsular forests due to the Rohingya refugee crisis. The CHT forests, considered as extant range and from where the only leopard camera trap image in the country exists, are the best hope for the leopards in Bangladesh. Comprehensive surveys are recommended for north-eastern transborder forests, extensions of the Tripura Hills, and the CHT region in order to better understand and facilitate leopard conservation in the country. We also suggest a systematic approach to protect wildlife beyond protected areas considering transient leopard conflicts in the north-western region.

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A recent camera trap survey of tigers Panthera tigris in Sarpang Forest Division, located in south-central Bhutan, revealed an increase in tiger number by four individuals. Previously only one individual has been recorded. This finding affirms the functionality of Bhutan’s biological corridors and depicts a promising future for tigers in Bhutan.

Biological corridors connecting different protected areas are expected to enhance wildlife movement and dispersal between the protected areas in Bhutan. Here, we report a rare capture of snow leopard Panthera uncia by remotely triggered camera traps in the alpine landscape of Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park in central Bhutan. The camera trap location is far away from the prime snow leopard habitats in Wangchuck Centennial National Park in northern Bhutan. Therefore, we analysed the landscape structure of a biological corridor that connects the two protected areas to establish possible landscape linkage for snow leopard movement between the two national parks. The biological corridor with highly elevated ridge and forested habitat with diverse ungulate species is expected to have enabled the rare movement of snow leopard, signifying that effective management of biological corridors is crucial for wildlife movement.

Seven species of wild felids were identified via camera trapping between September 2016 and April 2017 in Xinlong County, Sichuan province, representing a hotspot with the highest diversity of sympatric wild felids ever reported in China. Within an area of 240 km² and a survey period of 15,248 camera trap days, we confirmed the presence of the leopard Panthera pardus, snow leopard Panthera uncia, Asiatic golden cat Catopuma temminckii, Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx, leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis, Chinese mountain cat Felis bieti, and Pallas’s cat Otocolobus manul. With seven out of the 40 living wild cat species, this record of a high number of co-existing felids found in China unraveled Xinlong and its adjacent area as a previously unreported felid sanctuary, which may be attributed to the wide altitudinal spectrum and the extreme habitat variability in the landscape. This finding highlights the significance of the mountains of south-west China as one of the world’s most important hotspots for felids.

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Puma Puma concolor was documented for the first time in the state of Tlaxcala, Mexico. The record is relevant because it is outside the described distribution of the species, and it is in close proximity to a growing urban area. This finding highlights the importance of community monitoring efforts and urges developing conservation actions to ensure the lasting presence of the species in the region.

A male jaguar Panthera onca cub was found dead on 5 June 2020 in Tortuguero National Park, Costa Rica. The cause of death was considered to be infanticide, although the reason triggering the event remains unknown.

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