Wild Cat Hybrids

by Michael
(London)

Safari Cat – photo copyright Helmi Flick – please respect copyright

Here is a useful (?) list of wildcat hybrids taken from a list compiled by Australian researchers whose intent (as I see it) was to formulate an argument why the Savannah cat could not imported into Australia for fear of decimating the indigenous wildlife of that country. The term “wildcat” is more accurately written as “wild cat” because “wildcat” is a species of wild cat. Hope that is clear!

Here is the list:

Punjabi domestic: — cat X Indian wild cat (F. lybica). This cat would seem to be a natural hybrid existing in the wild.

Unnamed or Kellas Cat: — domestic cat X Scottish wild cat (F. silvestris). The fear is that the purity of the Scottish Wildcat is being eroded by naturally occurring mating between the domestic cat and this wildcat. Some of the hybrids are black wildcats called Kellas cats after the village where they were first seen. Attempts to stop this.

Unnamed: domestic cat X African Wild cat (F. lybica)

Chausie, Jungle Curl, Stone Cougar: — domestic cat X Jungle cat (F. chaus). Although this is a man made hybrid it is thought that some wildcat hybrids from these parents exist in the wild but there in no DNA evidence as far as I know.

Unnamed: — domestic cat X Black-footed cat (F. nigripes). This is speculative. The Black-footed cat is like a domestic cat in appearance, incidentally.

Bengal, Pantherette: — domestic cat X Leopard cat (P. bengalensis Amur subspecies). The best known man made wildcat hybrid. None known to exist in the wild.

Ussuri: — domestic cat X Leopard cat (P. bengalensis). The Ussuri is said to occur in the wild and is also seen as a rare domestic cat (man made).

Unnamed: — domestic cat X Rusty-spotted cat (P. rubiginosus). This hybrid may have come about naturally in India. I don’t know of any evidence.

Machbagral or Bagral, Viverral: — domestic cat X Fishing cat{new window} (P. viverrinus). Man made hybrid.

Safari: — domestic cat X Geoffroy’s cat (L. geoffroyii). No natural hybrids known.

Bristol: — domestic cat X Margay (L. wiedii). No natural wildcat hybrids and very rare as a domestic cat; recognized in the USA in the 1980s apparently.

Unnamed: — domestic cat X Oncilla (little spotted cat, tiger cat) (L. tigrinus). Man made. Very rare if it exists at all.

Savannah: — domestic cat X Serval (F. serval). Well known man made wildcat hybrid. Very impressive cat. Ashera cat (Allerca cats) looks very similar.

Caracat: — domestic cat X Caracal (C. caracall). Accidentally occurred in a Moscow Zoo, 1998.

Legend Cat, American Lynx, Desert Lynx, Alpine Lynx, Highland Lynx, American Bobtail and Pixie-bob: — domestic cat X Bobcat (L. rufus). Pixie-bob not shown, genetically, to be a wildcat hybrid.

Jaguarundi Curl*, Mandalan Jaguar*: — domestic cat X Jaguarundi (P. yagouaroundi)*

Unnamed*: — domestic cat X Pallas cat (F. manul)*

Unnamed*: — domestic cat X North American Lynx (L. canadenis)*

The Jambi: — domestic cat X Asian Fishing cat (new window) and see its distribution. This is one of the new wildcat hybrids.

* means to be confirmed

Wildcat hybrids gained in popularity (almost exclusively in the USA) in the latter part of the last century. There may be a bit of a backlash now.

Wildcat Hybrids to Home Page

Links to a number of wildcats