Afro-Asiatic Wild Cat
Felis lybica
P. Meier
Description
The revised taxonomy of the Felidae provisionally recognises the following species of the Genus Felis: Felis chaus (jungle cat), Felis nigripes (black-footed cat), Felis margarita (sand cat), Felis bieti (Chinese mountain cat), Felis silvestris (European wildcat), Felis lybica (Afro-Asiatic wildcat) and Felis catus (domestic cat). Felis lybica thus includes the steppe and bush cats of Africa and Asia. Although from some key areas no samples were available, three subspecies of Felis lybica have been tentatively identified:
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Felis lybica lybica in East, West and North Africa, Arabian Peninsula, Middle East, Corsica, Sardinia and Crete
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Felis lybica cafra in southern Africa, boundary with F. l. lybica may lie in Mozambique or Tanzania and
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Felis lybica ornata in South-West and Central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Mongolia and China.
The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is the size of a large domestic cat but its legs are longer than those of the domestic cat. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is smaller than the European wildcat and generally of a lighter build. Its fur is reddish, sandy, tawny brown to greyish coloured, typically marked with faint, unremarkable tabby stripes and/or spots on the body and sides. The legs may also be striped. Its fur colour varies from region to region with paler coloured individuals living in dryer areas and darker more heavily spotted and striped individuals in more humid areas. Contrary to the European wildcat with a broad bushy tail, the tail of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat is slim and tapered with the terminal parts ringed with a dark tip. The subspecies Felis lybica lybica and Felis lybica cafra have less pronounced stripes than the European wildcat. The subspecies Felis lybica ornata has often many more prominent irregular dark spots and stripes.
Weight
2 - 8 kg
Body Length
40.6 - 80 cm
Tail Length
21.5 - 37.5 cm
Longevity
upto 16 years
Litter Size
1 - 6 cubs, rarely upto 8
P. Meier
Status and Distribution
The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is considered as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List. It is one of the most common felid species and widely distributed across Africa and Asia. However, the population trend of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat is not known but thought to be stable in much of its range with possibly declining populations in other regions. Declines have been reported from South Africa, Lesotho and the Arabian Peninsula. The population size of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat is not known and estimates at national or subpopulation levels are unavailable. Due to its cryptic behaviour and its hybridisation with domestic cats, it is difficult to assess its status. In The Red List of Mammals of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat is listed as Least Concern. In the Regional Red List Status of Carnivores in the Arabian Peninsula and in the list of Morocco it is listed as Near Threatened. In the United Arab Emirates and in China it is listed as Endangered, in Israel and Angola as Vulnerable and in Mongolia and Uganda as Data Deficient.
The Afro-Asiatic wildcat has a wide distribution across most of Africa, south-west and central Asia into India, China and Mongolia. In Africa it is only absent from closed tropical forest. In southern Africa, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat is fairly common in most protected areas and distributed in Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and probably Zimbabwe and Swaziland. In eastern Africa, it occurs in Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda. It can be found in the savannas of western Africa from Mauritania across to the Horn of Africa, in Mali, Niger, Chad, Sudan and Ethiopia. Its status in South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea and Djibouti is unknown. In the north it is found in Western Sahara and Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is also found on the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia, Corsica and Crete although its taxonomic classification there needs further investigation.
In the Serengeti National Park, the density of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat was estimated at 10-100 per 100 km2.
On the Arabian Peninsula, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat inhabits the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Further eastwards it is found in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Armenia, Pakistan, India, possibly Nepal, in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Russia into western China and the southern Mongolia. It also inhabits the Caucasus and possibly Turkey where it probably overlaps with Felis silvestris. The western extent of the Asiatic wildcat distribution is unknown. It has been suggested that Felis lybica ornata, Felis silvestris and Felis lybica lybica divide in the region of Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus. However, recent camera trap pictures from Armenia, western Iran, Eastern Turkey and Kurdistan Mountains in Iraq reveal a common coat pattern, suggesting that the division of the European wildcat and Felis lybica lybica and Felis lybica ornata might occur further west. A genetic study of wildcats in Iran indicates this country to be the separation area between F. l. lybica and F. l. ornata, but found no individuals of European wildcats. Comprehensive genetic analyses are required to map the distribution of Felis lybica ornata in Southwest Asia.
Ecology and Behaviour
The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is a solitary species and mostly nocturnal (especially in hot environments or in proximity to settled areas) but can also be observed during daytime. It hunts on the ground and is also a very good climber. It hunts its prey by stalking followed by a quick attack. The mother teaches her cubs to hunt by providing them injured prey or by giving them invertebrates such as beetles and the eggs of ground dwelling birds. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat needs cover such as bushes, shrubs, tall grass or rocky hillsides or even agricultural crops. It rests and dens in burrows created by other species such as foxes or aardvarks. It is a solitary and territorial species.
The mating season seems to vary according to the range. The breeding season in southern Africa is from September to March. In the northern Sahara, breeding takes place from January to March. In India, the breeding season runs from March to April and from November to December, whereas in Central Asia it runs from January to February. In Pakistan, the mating season seems to be year-round. Litter size is usually 2–4, rarely up to 8. The gestation lasts for 56–68 days and age at sexual maturity can be at 9–12 months but first breeding probably takes place at 18–22 months.
The wildcat is territorial and uses scent marks for communication. Home ranges of males and females are recorded from 1.7 to over 50 km², depending on habitat and prey abundance. In the United Arab Emirates, the home range of one female was recorded at 52.7 km². In South Africa, female home ranges of 6-10 km² were recorded in the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park. In the southern Kalahari, home ranges of females reached 3.5 km² and of males 7.7 km². The home range of one male wildcat near the Nakuru in Kenya was 4.3 km².
M. Pittet
Prey
The main prey species of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat are rodents such as jerboas, gerbils, voles and mice and lagomorphs. It also takes insectivores, birds, amphibians, insects, lizards, snakes, fish or occasionally martens, weasels and polecats. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat can also prey on young antelopes. It occasionally scavenges food, or preys upon poultry and small livestock (lambs, goat kids). A camera trap picture from Saudi Arabia shows a wildcat dragging a dead Blandford’s fox. It is assumed that the fox was killed by the cat, but it is unclear whether the cat actually consumed the fox or whether this was the result of non-consumptive interspecific competition.
Main Threats
Hybridisation with domestic cats is considered one of the main threats to the Afro-Asiatic wildcat and is widespread across their range. Hybridisation was reported in southern and northern Africa, in Pakistan and Central Asia and is most likely also a problem in India. In South Africa, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat populations seem to have a low level of hybridisation and protected areas are important in maintaining genetic purity. However, for many areas the level of hybridisation with domestic cats is unknown. Feral domestic cats also compete for food and habitat with the Afro-Asiatic wildcat and transmit diseases.
Another important threat is poaching and retaliatory killing related to conflict with humans. Afro-Asiatic wildcats are reported to kill small livestock and poultry and are trapped, poisoned, killed by shepherd dogs or directly poached by humans in several range countries. In some parts of southern Africa, they are persecuted as pests. Road traffic mortality can be high in certain areas. Free ranging dogs kill Afro-Asiatic wildcats too and possibly increase their mortality rate.
Another threat is habitat destruction, land use changes and reduced habitat quality due to habitat conversion. However, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat can also persist in cultivated landscapes if prey populations are high. In these environments rodenticides and other chemicals may threaten it as well as incidental killing e.g. in snares set for other species.
In the past, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat was trapped in high numbers for its fur in several areas such as Kazakhstan, China, India and Afghanistan. In 1979, traders in India handed over stocks of 41,845 furs of wildcats for an export amnesty. Presently, there is little international trade in Afro-Asiatic wildcats, but pelts still show up in local markets throughout the range. In Lesotho, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat fur is used for clothes, blankets, hats etc. and in Algeria, it is occasionally used for meat consumption and/or for medicine. It is also possibly hunted for its fur in South Africa, India, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and China. The impacts of the pet trade on wildcats are unknown.
Conservation Efforts and Protection Status
Future research on Afro-Asiatic wildcat’s status, population trends, distribution and threats is required.
The wildcat has been included in Appendix II of CITES since 1977 and is fully protected across most of its range in Africa and Asia. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is scheduled in the Wildlife Protection Act (1972) of India and hunting and trade are prohibited in Pakistan. In Afghanistan, the Afro-Asiatic wildcat was placed on the country’s first Protected Species List in 2009. All hunting and trading of the species is prohibited, and it is proposed as a priority species for future research. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is a protected species according to the Red Books of China, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Mongolia and Russia.
There is limited conservation attention given to Afro-Asiatic wildcats. Thus, there is an urgent need for more information about the status and distribution of the Afro-Asiatic wildcat as little information is available and its population size and its status is largely unknown. More assessments are need on the impact of threats, such as hybridisation across its range, spread of diseases from domestic cats, identification of roadkill hotspots, illegal trade and poaching as well as associated mitigation measures i.e. identifying genetically pure Afro-Asiatic wildcat populations, preventing hybridisation, mitigation of human-wildcat conflicts, creation of safe corridors across roads, control of illegal trade of Afro-Asiatic wildcat fur and body parts and control of habitat loss and degradation.
K. Varma
Habitat
The Afro-Asiatic wildcat occurs in a wide variety of habitats and has a broad habitat tolerance. It inhabits deserts, semi deserts, savannahs and scrub grasslands, dry, mixed or temperate forests, open forests in hilly and rocky terrain as well as in mountainous areas with sufficient vegetation. The Afro-Asiatic wildcat is only absent from rainforest, dense forests, vast deserts and deep snow. It can be found up to 3,000 m elevation, The wildcat usually occurs close to water sources but can also live in arid areas. It can also be found in cultivated areas and human settlements, including agricultural landscapes where they use tall crops as shelter.