Feeding Ecology and IUCN Assessment
The primary prey of the Chinese desert cat is rodents (90% of prey), pika (see below) and birds including pheasants make up the remainder.
Jim Sanderson says that, “Pandas…are very well protected by Chinese law, but there is virtually no protection for this cat…. There’s no interest in its conservation because it’s poorly known, but now perhaps this will change.” (src: National Geographic News)
Apparently, the Chinese mountain cat is protected in China but is poisoned by people either through reckless use of poison to kill its prey the pika (see below), which also endangers survival through loss of prey.
Pika, the prey of the Chinese desert cat. The Pika is also called a ‘rock rabbit’ and is the smallest member of the rabbit family. Photo by DavidQuick
The IUCN Red List for Threatened Species™ list this cat as a subspecies of the wildcat and classifies the cat’s status in the wild as Vulnerable. This may be somewhat of a guesstimate as population numbers and densities are not adequately known it appears.
This cat’s fur is prized, which is another reason that makes it status vulnerable.
Camera trapped Chinese Mountain Cat.
Habitat
Habitat of the Chinese mountain cat is mountainous terrain, montane forest, alpine meadows, semi-desert and loess hill steppe. It has been recorded at elevations of 2.8 to 4 thousand meters.
The picture heading this page was taken in Sichuan Province, China at about 12,300 feet above sea level (3,750 meters) on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau.
The above map shows the rough range of the Chinese mountain cat and is quite unspecific because the distribution of this rare wildcat is not known accurately. The blank map is by Wikimedia Commons.
The cat’s thick fur indicates that this cat lives on high ground. Here is a map of the area where the photograph was taken:
Sichuan Province is in the west of China near Tibet. I suspect the terrain to be quite harsh. The rock rabbits (its prey mentioned above) will tell us a bit about the habitat of the Chinese desert cat. The Pika lives in cold climates. “Most [Pika]..live on rocky mountain sides, where there are numerous crevices to shelter in, although some also construct crude burrows” (src: Wikipedia). The fact that this cat’s name is also Chinese Desert Cat also gives clues as to the barren terrain.
Perhaps the height at which this cat lives is an indication as to intrusive human activity, but that is speculation on my part.
