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Conservation status codes listed follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Range maps are provided wherever possible; if a range map is not available, a description of the cat's range is provided. Ranges are based on the IUCN Red List for that species unless otherwise noted.
The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (Felis silvestris) and the African wildcat (F. lybica).The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the African wildcat inhabits semi-arid landscapes and steppes in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia, into western India and western China. [2]
European wildcat in a zoo in Děčín, Czech Republic. Felis (catus) silvestris was the scientific name proposed in 1778 by Johann von Schreber when he described a wild cat based on texts from the early 18th century and before. [3] In the 19th and 20th centuries, several wildcat type specimens were described and proposed as subspecies, including:
Wild cats occur in Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas. Some wild cat species are adapted to forest and savanna habitats, some to arid environments, and a few also to wetlands and mountainous terrain. Their activity patterns range from nocturnal and crepuscular to diurnal, depending on their preferred prey species. [8]
Over 1.5 million living animal species have been described—of which around 1 million are insects—but it has been estimated there are over 7 million in total. Animals range in size from 8.5 millionths of a metre to 33.6 metres (110 ft) long and have complex interactions with each other and their environments, forming intricate food webs .
The wild cat in Sardinia and Corsica was long considered to be an African wildcat subspecies with the scientific name Felis lybica sarda. [25] Results of zooarchaeological research indicate that it descended from domestic cats that were introduced probably at the beginning of the first millennium and originated in the Near East .
This category is for articles pertaining to the two wildcat species, their subspecies, and populations formerly considered subspecies. Pages in category "Wildcats" The following 11 pages are in this category, out of 11 total.
Felis grampia was the scientific name proposed in 1907 by Gerrit Smith Miller Jr. who first described the skin and the skull of a wildcat specimen from Scotland. He argued that this male specimen from Invermoriston was the same size as the European wildcat (Felis silvestris), but differed by a darker fur with more pronounced black markings and black soles of the paws. [2]