Skip to main content

African Wildcat

Felis silvestris lybica
Most people understand that dogs were domesticated from Grey Wolves, but the ancestry of the domestic cat isn't as widely known. Enter the African Wildcat, a Wildcat subspecies that is responsible for all of the housecats we have today!

There are several different Wildcats around the world, spanning across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Though they are all genetically similar, and they all look a heck of a lot like domesticated cats, it is one particular African subspecies (F. s. lybica) that ended up being domesticated by Middle Eastern civilizations around 10,000 years ago.

African Wildcats live throughout the African continent, as well as on the Arabian Peninsula and near the Caspian Sea. There are actually over a dozen subspecies on the continent aside from the domestic ancestor. They live in most habitats, including deserts, forests, and savannas.

The African Wildcat is, unsurprisingly, a carnivore. They hunt by pouncing, and go after small mammals, reptiles, birds, and amphibians. Hunting is done primarily at dawn and dusk. The are solitary animals for the most part, except when a  female is raising a litter of kittens.

The entire Wildcat species is listed as being of Least Concern, but they do face some conservation challenges. The most prominent of these is hybridization; many of the African Wildcats interbreed with domestic cats, resulting in very few genetically pure populations.

IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : Africa
Size : Body Length around 30in (76cm), Weight up to 14lbs (6.5kg)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Mammalia -- Order : Carnivora
Family : Felidae -- Genus : Felis -- Species : F. silvestris -- Subspecies : F. s. lybica, others

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status :  Not Listed Location :   Cent