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Small Wild Cats
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Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) caught with camera trap in Reserva De Producción De Fauna Cuyabeno, Ecuador.
 *This image is copyright of its original author
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) from Sundarban Tiger Reserve, India.
Photo and information credits: Soumyajit Nandy "Why should boys have all the fun?"  *This image is copyright of its original author
Landscape Use and Co-Occurrence Patterns of Neotropical Spotted Cats Nagy-Reis, Nichols, Chiarello, Ribeiro & Setz, 2017
 *This image is copyright of its original author Fig 2. Neotropical spotted cats’ site occupancy. Interpolated site occupancy of the three spotted cats at an Atlantic Forest site in Brazil: ocelot—Leopardus pardalis (top left), margay—L. wiedii (top right), oncilla—L. guttulus (bottom left). Abstract: "Small felids influence ecosystem dynamics through prey and plant population changes. Although most of these species are threatened, they are accorded one of the lowest research efforts of all felids, and we lack basic information about them. Many felids occur in sympatry, where intraguild competition is frequent. Therefore, assessing the role of interspecific interactions along with the relative importance of landscape characteristics is necessary to understand how these species co-occur in space. Here, we selected three morphologically similar and closely related species of small Neotropical cats to evaluate the roles of interspecific interactions, geomorphometry, environmental, and anthropogenic landscape characteristics on their habitat use. We collected data with camera trapping and scat sampling in a large protected Atlantic forest remnant (35,000 ha). Throughout occupancy modeling we investigated whether these species occur together more or less frequently than would be expected by chance, while dealing with imperfect detection and incorporating possible habitat preferences into the models. We used occupancy as a measure of their habitat use. Although intraguild competition can be an important determinant of carnivore assemblages, in our system, we did not find evidence that one species affects the habitat use of the other. Evidence suggested that proximity to the nature reserve (a more protected area) was a more important driver of Neotropical spotted cats’ occurrence than interspecific interactions or geomorphometry and environmental landscape characteristics—even though our entire study area is under some type of protection. This suggests that small felids can be sensitive to the area protection status, emphasizing the importance of maintaining and creating reserves and other areas with elevated protection for the proper management and conservation of the group."
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, India.
Photo and information credits: Bhautik R. Desai The jungle cat Clicked at Tadoba - Andhari Tiger Reserve Jan2017  *This image is copyright of its original author
Pallas's Cat (Otocolobus manul) from Mongolia.
Photo and information credits: Alex Kirichko Full Speed. Male Manul (Pallas's Cat). The Pallas's cat, also called the Manul, is a small wild cat with a broad but fragmented distribution in the grasslands and montane steppes of Central Asia,where they inhabit elevations of up to 5,050 m. It is negatively affected by habitat degradation, prey base decline, and hunting, and has therefore been classified as Near Threatened by IUCN since 2002.(Wikipedia) Many thanks for the organization of this trip to my good friend and very nice wildlife photographer Валерий Малеев. Mongolia. January 2017. (outside temperature -32 Celsius :-))  *This image is copyright of its original author
Density and habitat use of the leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) in three commercial forest reserves in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo Mohamed et al., 2013
Abstract: "The small (2- to 7-kg) leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) is the most common cat species in Asia. Although it occurs in a wide range of habitats and seems to adapt well to anthropogenic habitat changes, surprisingly little is known about this species in the wild. All studies have focused on protected areas, although a large proportion of Southeast Asian forests are timber concessions. During this study, we used large camera-trapping data sets (783 records of 124 individuals) from 3 commercially used forests to investigate consequences of different logging regimes on density and habitat associations of the leopard cat. We applied spatial capture–recapture models accounting for the location of camera-traps (on or off road) to obtain estimates of leopard cat density. Density was higher in the 2 more disturbed forest reserves (X¯ ¼12.4 individuals/100 km2 6 1.6 SE and 16.5 6 2 individuals/100 km2 ) than in the sustainably managed forest (9.6 6 1.7 individuals/100 km2 ). Encounter rates with off-road traps were only 3.6–9.1% of those for on-road traps. Occupancy models, which accounted for spatial autocorrelation between sampling sites by using a conditional autoregressive model, revealed that canopy closure and ratio of climax to pioneer trees had a significantly negative impact on leopard cat occurrence. Our results confirm that the leopard cat is doing well in modified landscapes and even seems to benefit from the opening of forests. With such flexibility the leopard cat is an exception among tropical rain-forest carnivores."
First jungle cats seen in Thailand for 40 years
16 Feb 2017 at 14:13 WRITER: ONLINE REPORTERS This picture of a wild jungle cat was reportedly taken at the Omkoi Wildlife Sanctuary in Chiang Mai province by freelance photographer Parinya Phadungthin (photo: Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation)  *This image is copyright of its original author A freelance photographer has taken pictures of jungle cats in the wild in a Chiang Mai forest, four decades after they were thought to be extinct in Thailand. Thanya Netithammakun, director-general of the National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, said officials at Omkoi Wildlife Sanctuary in Chiang Mai province reported that Parinya Phadungthin had taken pictures of male and female jungle cats in the sanctuary earlier this month. "It is very exciting, delightful because we have not seen these animals in four decades. Now, this proves that jungle cats are not extinct in Thai forests," he said. The last reported sighting of a jungle cat was by late conservationist Boonsong Lekagul in 1976. Since then there had not been a single report of a sighting or any evidence that any jungle cats were still living in Thailand, Mr Thanya said. This welcome report showed that the Omkoi Wildlife Sanctuary was in good condition and patrols there were effective, he said. His department would start a study of the population of jungle cats there. Saksit Simcharoen, head of academic affairs at the department, said no one had seriously studied jungle cats in Thailand, so there was not much information about the animals. A jungle cat weighs 4-6 kilogrammes and is very agile, he said. "I have not heard anything about jungle cats for a very long time. I understood they were extinct in Thailand. They have been seen only in forests in India," Mr Saksit said.
Home-range size of the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris): a report from two areas in Central Italy Anile et al., 2017
Abstract: "Although the behavioural ecology of the European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris) has been studied in several European countries, its home-range size is still poorly known due to elusive behaviour of the species living in typically low population densities. In our study, 11 wildcats from two distinct areas, the Maremma Regional Park (Tuscany; 3 males and 1 female) and the Paradiso di Pianciano Estate (Umbria; 6 males and 1 female), both located in Central Italy, were studied by means of classical VHF radio-tracking. Home ranges were calculated by means of the Brownian bridge movement model (BBMM). Variables significantly affecting home-range size were: study area, gender and the interaction between gender*age. The potential effect of the reproductive season and the nocturnal period was not supported. The main findings indicate that: (1) home-range sizes in Tuscany were larger than those in Umbria; (2) home-range size was positively related to the age of individuals; (3) males exploited larger home ranges than females in all age-classes except for the sub-adult age-class; this latter pattern has never emerged from any previous wildcat radio-telemetry study. Population density, different management regimes in the areas considered and the local abundance of prey may explain differences in home-range sizes between the study areas. The estimated home ranges of wildcats in Umbria were slightly larger than those reported across Europe, while those calculated in the Tuscan study area were significantly greater." 
Small wild cat size comparison and distribution of small wild cats around the World taken from the Book SMALL WILD CATS The Animal Answer Guide (James G. Anderson and Patrick Watson) 2011
 *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author
The palaeogenetics of cat dispersal in the ancient world Ottoni et al., 2017
Abstract: "The cat has long been important to human societies as a pest-control agent, object of symbolic value and companion animal, but little is known about its domestication process and early anthropogenic dispersal. Here we show, using ancient DNA analysis of geographically and temporally widespread archaeological cat remains, that both the Near Eastern and Egyptian populations of Felis silvestris lybica contributed to the gene pool of the domestic cat at different historical times. While the cat’s worldwide conquest began during the Neolithic period in the Near East, its dispersal gained momentum during the Classical period, when the Egyptian cat successfully spread throughout the Old World. The expansion patterns and ranges suggest dispersal along human maritime and terrestrial routes of trade and connectivity. A coat-colour variant was found at high frequency only after the Middle Ages, suggesting that directed breeding of cats occurred later than with most other domesticated animals. The domestic cat is present on all continents except Antarctica, and in the most remote regions of the world, and its evolutionary success is unquestioned. While it is nowadays one of the most cherished companion animals in the Western world, for ancient societies barn cats, village cats and ships’ cats provided critical protection against vermin, especially rodent pests responsible for economic loss and disease. Owing to a paucity of cat remains in the archaeological record, current hypotheses about early cat domestication rely on only a few zooarchaeological case studies. These studies suggest that ancient societies in both the Near East and Egypt could have played key roles in cat domestication. Wildcats (Felis silvestris) are distributed all over the Old World. Current taxonomy distinguishes five wild, geographically partitioned subspecies: Felis silvestris silvestris, Felis silvestris lybica, Felis silvestris ornata, Felis silvestris cafra and Felis silvestris bieti. Modern genetic data analyses of nuclear short tandem repeats (STR) and 16% of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genome in extant wild and domestic cats revealed that only one of them, the north African/southwest Asian F. s. lybica, was ultimately domesticated. Wildcats are solitary, territorial hunters and lack a hierarchical social structure, features that make them poor candidates for domestication. Indeed, zooarchaeological evidence points to a commensal relationship between cats and humans lasting thousands of years before humans exerted substantial influence on their breeding. Throughout this period of commensal interaction, tamed and domestic cats became feral and/or intermixed with wild F. s. lybica or other wild subspecies as is common today. These regular genetic exchanges may have contributed to the low level of differentiation observed between modern wild and domestic cat genome sequences. Accordingly, the domestication process seemingly has not profoundly altered the morphological, physiological, behavioural and ecological features of cats, in contrast to what has been observed, for example, for dogs. To address questions related to the contribution of the two purported centres of cat domestication, the Near East and Egypt, and the history of human-mediated cat dispersal, we analysed ancient and modern cats from Europe, north and east Africa, and southwest Asia (SWA), spanning around 9,000 years, from the Mesolithic period to the twentieth century AD. We analysed ancient DNA (aDNA) to explore whether a fine phylogeographic structure of maternal lineages existed prior to the domestication of F. s. lybica and whether, when and how it was reconfigured over time in response to human intervention, thereby documenting the domestication process of the cat. We also studied a genetically defined coat-colour marker, the blotched tabby marking, to monitor a phenotypic change reflecting human-driven selection along the domestication pathway."
Wild Cat from National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise, Italy.
Photo and information credits: Michele Bavassano Photographer The ghost of the woods Gatto Selvatico (Felis silvestris silvestris)  *This image is copyright of its original author
Up to safety
Leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) Bhutan I had heard stories of this species while in Bhutan, one being a close encounter with a farmer and the cat stalking a barking deer and her calf. In the mountains this widespread species grow larger than in the lowland and can take on a young deer. Wild cats are notoriously hard to spot as they are so elusive and can walk silently on dry vegetation. Many are also nocturnal. The excellent camouflage is making them extraordinarily hard to spot in the forest. But a few times they cross a road or venture out in the open during the day, like in a pasture or a part of land without any trees or thickets. This encounter was on a very bad and rarely used road, and it was about to cross it, much likely due to the sound of the car engine, but as the other side of the road was a very steep slope it was not at all an easy escape. It was amazing to watch how it climbed up with each step carefully calculated. I looked glued to the slope. It would perhaps normally have escaped into the forest with a couple of jumps, but here it was all about getting to safety through an extremely risky route. It didn’t look back at us even once, only focused on the next step up and away from us. Even here against the open dirt, it is well camouflaged, and if it had not been in the middle of the road for a split second and just stood still on the slope I would most likely have missed it. It is an amazingly beautiful and agile creature and the only wild cat species I encountered during my Bhutan adventure. Image Copyright © 2017 +Morten Ross Image Capture Date: 04 April 2017 14:56 Altitude: 1519 meters  *This image is copyright of its original author
From Cuddeback Digital:
"Graham Gillette of Des Moines, IA submitted this beautiful image of a lynx taken near Gunflint Lake in Minnesota's Boundary Canoe Area along the Canadian border."  *This image is copyright of its original author
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