- that the African
wildcat looks a lot like a tabby house cat
- that the African
wildcat often eats scorpions
- that this cat
is one of the ancestor
of the domestic house cat
- that this cat
like most cats lives a solitary life
2. Natural History
The African wildcat of
the lybica group is very similar to the domestic cat.
The background color of its coat ranges from reddish
to sandy yellow to tawny brown to gray, and is typically
marked with faint tabby stripes and spots. The backs
of the ears are reddish or rusty-brown and it has relatively
long legs. In southern Africa, males weigh an average
of 5 kg while females are approximately 4 kg in weight.
Wildcats are mainly nocturnal,
especially in very hot climates or near settled areas,
but are also active in early morning and late afternoon.
Rodents are their preferred prey, but they also hunt
birds, reptiles, amphibians, as well as other mammals
such as young antelope. Insects, spiders and even scorpions
are also often eaten. They seldom scavenge on carrion.
During the summer in
southern Africa, wildcats give birth to two to five
kittens after a gestation period of 56-63 days. They
become mature at about eleven months of age and can
live up to fifteen years. The African wildcat is generally
recognized as the ancestor of the domestic cat. Although
feral domestic cats often live together in groups,
the wildcats prefer to live most of their lives alone.
The process of domestication may be the reason for
the greater sociality of the feral cats.
Distribution
The African wildcat lives
across a broad range of habitats. The tropical rain
forest appears to be the only habitat in which it does
not live. It is thinly distributed throughout the Nubian,
Saharan, and Arabian deserts, where it most frequently
is found in the mountains and dry watercourses. They
range up to 3,000 meters in altitude in Kenya, Ethiopia
and Algeria. The home range varies from one square
kilometer to a little over four square kilometers,
depending on the amount of available prey.
3. Primary Problems for
the Wild Populations of African Wildcats
The African wildcats
are the most abundant of the wild cats and are not
protected over most of its range. Hunting is prohibited
in Algeria, Israel, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique,
Niger, Nigeria and Tunisia. They are listed as CITES
Appendix II.
The primary threat facing
the African wildcat throughout its range is hybridization
with domestic cats. Hybridization has been taking place
over a long period of time. Male feral cats are larger
than male wildcats and occur in greater numbers, thus
giving them an advantage in breeding with wildcat females.
Distinctive characteristics of the wildcat, such as
long legs and reddish-backed ears, disappear with hybridization.
It is likely that pure strains of African wildcat will
be found only in protected areas remote from human
habitation. Several breeding programs have been started
to conserve pure strains of wildcat in captivity, but
the best hope for survival in the wild lies in controlling
the numbers of feral cats in remote protected areas.
