European wildcat description – a wild-looking tabby cat

European wildcat meows

Take a domestic tabby cat, make them a little larger, make them more substantial with a thick and slightly longer and denser coat, make the tabby markings a little less pronounced and give the cat that classic, unneutered jowly appearance and you’ve got yourself a European wildcat. The same kind of description applies to …

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African-Asian Wildcat

Introduction The description “African-Asian wildcat” describes two subspecies of wild cat whose combined distribution is from the southernmost tip of the African continent, through the Middle East and East towards a region north and east of India in a wide arch. Part of the reason why they are described together is because there is …

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Chinese mountain cat is hybridized and was not domesticated

Chinese mountain cat

Recent research tells us two things about the Chinese mountain cat aka Chinese desert cat: they are hybridized and they were not involved in the cat domestication process. Hybridization Hybridization is sometimes referred to as ‘genetic admixture’. Over many years the Chinese mountain cat has mated with both domestic and feral cats and other …

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Picture of a Chinese desert cat a.k.a. Chinese mountain cat

Chinese mountain cat

This cat should be called the Chinese steppe cat (an area of flat, unforested grassland). Perhaps the name Chinese desert cat is misleading because it inhabits barren steppe country and mountain brush terrain. It lives in the same general area as the giant Panda. This is a good picture of a wild cat species …

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Scottish wildcats are extinct or on the brink of extinction in the wild

Scottish wildcat kittens playing

A study recently concluded that Scottish wildcats are now part of the same gene pool as domestic cats which means that they are functionally extinct which in turn means that they are on the brink of extinction in the wild. And I understand it, “functionally extinct” means that the wild cat population in Scotland …

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Some Scottish wildcats to be captured for captive breeding programmes

There is disagreement about how best to protect and conserve the progressively endangered Scottish wildcat.  The Scottish wildcat is in a precarious situation.  The species is becoming extinct and has been for many, many years.  This is primarily because of breeding with outdoor domestic and feral cats leaving the Scottish wildcat non-purebred hybrids which …

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Today I heard the Scottish Wildcat was close to becoming extinct

By D. Green Today (16th Nov. 2013) I heard the Scottish Wildcat was close to becoming extinct and it made me remember an experience I had when aged 8-10, on the South Downs in about 1976-1978, where I think I saw one. Not only saw it but came within about 8ft of it and …

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