The Photograph
The photograph immediately above of the Chinese mountain cat above is copyright Jim Sanderson Ph.D – please respect copyright. Jim Sanderson is a small wildcat specialist and he and Tibetan assistants obtained this rare picture of this wild cat species from a camera trap near the remote village of Rongrah. They chose the spot for the camera having heard stories of a sighting by villagers. The pictures are shown here with the permission of Jim Sanderson. Jim works with the Wildlife Conservation Network and he led the team of people who organised the capturing of this rare photograph.
In recognition of Jim’s generosity and commitment in helping to research this rare wildcat I have donated $50 to the Wildlife Conservation Network (see Pictures of Cats org Donations), with the suggestion that it be used to further support research into this cat.
Description
This is a captive Chinese mountain cat (believed photo copyright Jim Sanderson). Its appearance is similar to the Scottish Wildcat, which is a subspecies of wildcat. As mentioned, the Chinese mountain cat is currently considered a subspecies of wildcat, one of five.
This cat is between 27 and 33 inches in length (excluding tail) plus a tail of between about 11 and 16 inches. As to weight, this ranges between 10 and 20 lbs (4.5 to 9 kgs), which puts it in the same size range as the largest of domestic cats. It is said to be about twice the size of the average domestic cat by the Sunquists (Wild Cat Of The World).
Here is a screenshot from a video made by a Chinese camera trap organised by ‘Eye of the Secret Realm’.
Here is the video. This may stop working which is why I have uploaded the screenshot as well. The Chinese call this species the ‘desert cat’. The caption is: “In the Qinghai area of Qilian Mountain National Park, a desert cat mother took her cubs to go outdoors.”
The cat’s fur is sand coloured as can be seen in the picture. This is a brown tabby cat in domestic cat language. The fur is ticked with longer dark brown hairs. The tail is very thick with distinctive, dark rings towards the end of the tail. It is tipped with black.
The toes have tufts of fur growing between them presumably to provide protection against climate conditions. The chin is white and there are brown stripes on the cheeks of the cat heading this page.
This cat species first came to our attention in 1889, apparently, when members of a scientific expedition discovered it. The discovery, though, was not of a live cat but skins on sale. Plus ca change. It is felt that the Chinese mountain cat is related to the better known jungle cat, sand cat and Eurasian wildcat.
RELATED: Picture of female Chinese mountain cat and her kittens in the wild
