Page 158 - Present Day Wildlife_Float

The wildcat is a species comprising of the two small original wildcats, the European wildcat*
(Felis silvestris) which is found in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, and the African wildcat** (F.
lybica), which inhabits, semi-arid landscapes and steppes in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia,
into western India and western China. They are found in the Genus Felis***, which also includes their
descendent, the Domestic cat and various other wild cats. The genus Felis is a member of the subfamily
Felinae in the cat family Felidae. A representative size of an adult wildcat is often quoted at, 50 to 80 cm
in length – which excludes a 25 to 35 cm tail –
and a height at the shoulders of around 35 to 40
cm. Its weight is around 3 to 10 kg. The term
wildcat is also used to describe feral domestic
cats and several other species of small cats in
the cat family.

The two wildcat species differ from one
another. The European wildcat is slightly larg-
er, has long fur with dark stripes and a bushy,
rounded tip tail. The smaller African wildcat
has short, lighter coloured sandy-grey fur with
faint stripes and a tapering tail. Another differ-
ence is with the subspecies Asiatic wildcat (F.
lybica ornata). Its coat is similar to the African
***Genus Felis wildcat but it’s not striped, it’s spotted. Both
wildcats have broad-based tipped ears with the
Domestic cat (F. catus) African species having small tufts of hair on the tips. They have

*European wildcat (F. sil- large round yellowish-green coloured eyes with a snout bristling
vestris) with white whiskers. Both are larger than the domestic cat, with
Jungle cat (F. chaus) the European wildcat having much longer legs than its domestic
**African wildcat (F. lybica) counterpart. Their paws have whiskers on the inner side and are
bristling with retractable claws; with a collection of five on the
Black-footed cat (F. nigripes) front paws and four on the rear.
Sand cat (F. margarita)
Chinese mountain cat (F. bieti) Spanning across such a large part of the world’s surface, the
Subspecies & Species wildcat’s habitats can vary drastically. The European wildcat can
be found on the heather covered hills of Scotland, throughout the
Species European wildcat temperate broadleaf and mixed forests across central Europe
Sub Caucasian wildcat through to the mountainous regions of Turkey and the Caucasus.
Species African wildcat The African wildcat, avoids rainforest, but can be found across
Asia from the Caspian Sea into China, on the savannahs of Africa
Sub Southern African wildcat and in deserts, like the Nubian and Sahara. Being nocturnal, wild-
Sub Asiatic wildcat cats spend a lot of time resting during the day. They create dens
in hollows in trees, rock crevices, in dense thickets even in bur-
rows vacated by other animals. They are solitary animals, meeting with others at mating time. They are
also territorial; marking out their territory by spraying urine, depositing feces in conspicuous places and
scratching on trees. Hunting for prey, the wildcat depends on its acute eyesight and hearing. It’s a pred-
atory stalker, and once located, it creeps silently up on its unsuspecting victim, then when the time is
right, shoots forward at a speed of 30km/h catching its prey totally by surprise. Startled birds that get
airborne are swatted from the sky, by the wildcat’s 3 metre running leap into the air.

The wildcat is primarily carnivorous; with the European wildcat dieting on birds and small mam-
mals like rabbits and rodents, while the African wildcat lives on, birds, small reptiles and invertebrates.
Of course, given its vastly different habitats and the prey available, the wildcats daily diet will vary dif-
ferently from area to area. The same can be said for the animals that prey on the wildcat. In some areas
the adult wildcat has no known predators, while in others, domestic dogs, various large snakes like,
rock pythons and large predatory birds are known to prey on the wildcat. Across all regions' however,
it’s the wildcat kittens that are most vulnerable to predatory animals. In Europe the pine marten and
predatory birds are known to prey on the kittens, while across other areas it’s the golden jackal, red fox
and martial eagle and many others that take their toll on the kittens. Although the wildcat is not listed
as an endangered species, in some areas its breeding with the more numerous domestic cat has ren-
dered it a very difficult species to distinguish, and its possible, in these regions, it may simply breed it-
self into extinction.