| Wildcat[1] | |
|---|---|
| (Felis silvestris silvestris) | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Felidae |
| Subfamily: | Felinae |
| Genus: | Felis |
| Species: | F. silvestris |
| Binomial name | |
| Felis silvestris Schreber, 1777[3] |
|
| subspecies | |
|
See text |
|
| The five subspecies of Felis silvestris according to a 2007 DNA study.[4] | |
The wildcat (Felis silvestris) is a small cat with several subspecies and a very broad distribution, found throughout most of Africa, Europe, and southwest and central Asia into India, China, and Mongolia.[2] It is a hunter of small mammals, birds, and other creatures of a similar or smaller size. Sometimes included is the ubiquitous domestic cat (as F. s. catus), which has been introduced to every habitable continent and most of the world's larger islands, and has become feral in many of those environments.
In its native environment, the wildcat is adaptable to a variety of habitat types: savannah, open forest, and steppe.
Genetic, morphological and archaeological evidence suggests that the housecat was domesticated from the African wildcat, probably 9-10,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East, coincident with the rise of agriculture and the need to protect harvests from grain-eating rodents. This domestication probably occurred when grain was yielded from the Agricultural Revolution onwards, which was stored in granaries that attracted rodents, which in turn attracted cats.[4]
The closest relative of the wildcat is the sand cat (Felis margarita).
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The wildcat physically resembles a domesticated cat in most respects. Although domesticated breeds show a great variety of shapes and colours, wild species are pale yellow to medium-brown with black stripes or spots. The underparts are light grey,and sometimes marked with black spots. Melanistic (all-black) individuals have been reported, but are probably the result of hybridisation with domestic cats.[5]
Wildcats range from 36.5 to 80 cm (14.4 to 31 in) in head-and-body length, with an additional 21 to 45 cm (8.3 to 18 in) of tail.[6] The standing height at the shoulder ranges from 25 to 40 cm (9.8 to 16 in). Weights can vary considerably, with smaller races weighing as little as 1.6 kg (3.5 lb) and larger races up to 13 kg (29 lb), although few are over 8 kg (18 lb). However, most wildcats weigh between 3 and 6 kg (6.6 and 13 lb).[7][8] The African and Asian subspecies tend to be more slender than the European wildcat, with shorter hair of a lighter brown colour.
Wildcats also have the same range of vocalisations as domestic cats, including purring, meowing, hissing, and growling. Except during the mating season, they tend to be quiet animals, vocalising only when close to each other.[5]
The European wildcat was once found throughout Europe, excluding far northern Scandinavia, Ireland and some of the smaller islands. Relict populations now survive in scattered locations across Europe, from Portugal and northern Scotland to Turkey and the Carpathian Mountains. Populations also survive on Sicily, and Sardinia. The African subspecies are found throughout the continent, avoiding only the deserts and dense tropical forests, and also in the Middle East, ranging as far as Iran. The Asian wildcat lives further east, from Pakistan and north-west India in a band through central Asia as far as Mongolia.[5]
As might be expected, given their wide distribution, wildcats are able to adapt to a range of different habitats. They require some degree of cover from which to stalk or ambush their prey, but almost any form of cover is suitable, including scrubland, rocky terrain, or agricultural land. They are commonly found in deciduous or tropical woodland, but also inhabit heathland, savannah, and swamp. They avoid areas with heavy winter snowfall, or where there is a limited supply of water.[5]
As of 2007, the following subspecies are recognized:[4][2]
The wildcat is extremely wary of humans, and avoids approaching human settlements. It lives in solitude and holds a territory of anything from 1.5 to 12 square kilometres (0.58 to 4.6 sq mi), depending on the local environment. Males tend to hold larger territories than females, and their ranges overlap those of from three to six neighbouring females. Wildcats of both sexes mark their ranges by depositing faeces in prominent locations and by leaving scent marks through urine spraying, cheek rubbing, and scratching the ground.[5]
Wildcats compete with fox, marten, Golden jackal, and jungle cat. Where their ranges overlap in the Caucasus, jungle cats inhabit lowland sections while wildcats reside in beech forests on the mountain slopes; at exact places where one of these two species exists, the other is altogether absent or only a few individuals are found. Martens kill many young wildcats in Central Europe, and forest martens have occasionally killed and eaten adult wildcats.[10]
The wildcat is an obligate carnivore; insects and plants are minor parts of its diet. Regardless of subspecies, most of its prey consists of small mammals, mainly rodents and rabbits, with lizards being the third most common prey in Portugal, and birds the least common.[11] Wildcats are, however, opportunistic predators, and have also been observed to eat amphibians, fish, weasels, scorpions, and even young roe deer or antelopes.[5]
Wildcats typically breed only once a year, although a second litter may be produced if the first dies early. The European wildcat breeds between February and March, and southern African wildcats show a preference for breeding during the wet season when prey is most abundant. The northern African wildcat, however, has been observed to breed year round, with no preference for a particular season. Oestrus lasts from two to eight days, and gestation from 56 to 69 days, tending to be slightly shorter in the African subspecies than in the European wildcat.[5]
The mother prepares an underground den or other sheltered location before giving birth. In the wild, litter sizes range from one to five kittens, with three or four being the most common. The kittens weigh between 75 and 150 grams (2.6 and 5.3 oz) at birth, and are blind and helpless. They are initially spotted, but the spots may fuse into stripes as the cat ages. The eyes open after seven to twelve days, and they begin to hunt live prey at ten to twelve weeks of age. They are fully weaned at two months, begin to live independently after about three months, and have dispersed to establish their own territories within a year, by which time they are sexually mature.[5]
Wildcats live up to sixteen years in captivity.
The main threats to the survival of this species are hybridization with domestic cats, disease transmission, and competition with feral domestic cats. Other significant threats are ongoing habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation in some areas (although in some other parts of Europe forest cover is increasing, as a result of abandonment of extensive agricultural land). Road kills and, in some areas, persecution are also problems.
The main central European population is in the Eifel mountains of Germany. There have been reintroduction efforts in Southern Germany. The European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) is trying to establish a European studbook for the species, which would contain data on the captive population in its member institutions. The wildcat was part of the EAZA European Carnivore Campaign [3], running from 2008–2010, with the goal of furthering the acceptance for living together with carnivores and ultimately supporting various field projects in Europe on each of the sixteen chosen species.
In 1777, Schreber described a wild cat referring to the scientific names Felis (catus) silvestris previously used by Brisson, and Felis silvestris used by Aldrovandi. In his description, he compared features of domestic and wild cats, of which he thought that they are native only to Europe and adjacent Asia, not far beyond the Black Sea.[3] Between 1777 and 1943, different authors described 40 more wildcats from different parts of Europe, Africa and Asia. The following wildcats were described from European countries:[12]
The Cretan Wildcat was described in 1953 by Theodor Haltenorth.[13]
The wildcats described from Asian countries include:[12]
The wildcats described from African countries include: