On my estimation and based upon my knowledge of the wild cat species, Pallas’s cat (manual) lives at the highest point above sea level of all the cat species at about 17,000 feet on Mount Everest. Of course, they live elsewhere (see base of article) ๐๐.
This article doesn’t apply to all Pallas’s cats but it does apply to a group of Pallas’s cats living on Mount Everest at an elevation above sea level of 17,027 feet (5190 m). How do the experts know?
Dr. Tracie Seimon of Wildlife Conservation Society’s Zoological Health Programme, based at the Bronx Zoo, co-led an expedition of scientists who collected scat samples (faeces) at two locations 3.7 miles apart at the above-mentioned elevation above sea level and also at 5110 m above sea level (16,765 feet).
DNA analysis of the scat samples collected from the sites confirmed that a couple of Pallas’s cats lived at this elevation on Mount Everest and their territory overlapped with the red fox.
These cats were feeding on pika and mountain weasels. Specifically, they were living in the Sagarmatha National Park, which is a protected World Heritage site. I’m told that it is heavily visited.
The co-author of the report, Dr. Anton Seimon said: “This is a unique discovery not only in terms of science but also conservation as this population of Pallas’s cat is legally protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)”.
According to WCS.org “[The discovery is the] result of the 2019 National Geographic and Rolex Perpetual Planet Everest Expedition, the most comprehensive single scientific expedition to the mountain in history.”
They hope that the discovery enlightens people as to the diversity of species at this World Heritage site.
Over 5,000 visitors enjoyed this national park in 2019 up from a few thousand in the 1970s. Until 2009 this small cat species with undetected in this area. That information implies that the Pallas’s cat has been there for a long time but simply unseen and undiscovered.
As mentioned, they found a couple of Pallas’s cats but there may be more and therefore further work is required to discover the population size. And they would like to know more about their population density, their home ranges and their full diet.
Map on Pallas’s cat distribution 2009
My thanks to Tamara Beinlich, a contributor, for finding this story.
