The Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) is a common wild cat species throughout Asia, preferring riverine and wetland habitats in the west of its range. However accelerated habitat loss has seen declines of this species where its range is close to urban and industrial development. Jungle Cats seem to adapt to certain agricultural land uses, although this can lead to predator conflict with farmers.
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) Unique Facts
~ Active day and night ~
~ Very strong swimmer ~
~ Mostly Asian range, occurs marginally in Africa ~
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) Classification
The taxonomy or scientific classification of the Jungle Cat species (Felis chaus) is as follows:
Kingdom: Animalia (animals)
Phylum: Chordata (vertebrates)
Class: Mammalia (mammals)
Order: Carnivora (carnivores)
Suborder: Feliformia (cat-like)
Family: Felidae (cats)
Subfamily: Felinae (small cats)
Species: Felis chaus (Jungle Cat)
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) Subspecies (lower classifications)
The global conservation status for Jungle Cats is Least Concern (LC); although there has been declines in parts of its range. Rapid habitat loss, poaching and wildlife conflict are the main threats to the survival of this wild cat.
Up to ten subspecies have been recognized in the past. The latest taxonomic revision proposes three subspecies pending further research:
1. Felis chaus chaus - Egypt and Middle East to Turkestan, Uzbekistan, Kazakstan and Afghanistan (riverine habitat)
2. Felis chaus affinis - East Afghanistan, Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka (variety of habitats)
3. Felis chaus fulvidina - SE Asia, including China (variety of habitats)
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2017-1. <www.iucnredlist.org> Felis chaus. 23 May 2017.
- Kitchener et al. 2017. A revised taxonomy of the Felidae. The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group.
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) Conservation and Research
Hers are some research theses and papers on this cat species by year:
- Adhya T. 2015.
Habitat use and diet of two sympatric felids - the Fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) and the Jungle cat (Felis chaus) - in a human-dominated landscape in suburban Kolkata. MSc Thesis, National Centre for Biological Sciences Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.
- Majumder A., Sankar K., Qureshi Q. & Basu S. 2011.
Food habits and temporal activity patterns of the Golden Jackal Canis aureus and the Jungle Cat Felis chaus in Pench Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 3(11), 2221-5
- Mukherjee S., Krishnan A., Tamma K., Home C., et al. 2010.
Ecology Driving Genetic Variation: A Comparative Phylogeography of Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) and Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) in India. PLoS ONE 5(10).
- Ogurlu I., Gundogdu E. & Yildirim I. C. 2010.
Population status of jungle cat (Felis chaus) in Egirdir lake, Turkey. Journal of Environmental Biology 31, 179-183.
- Duckworth J. W., Poole C. M., Tizard R. J., Walston J. L. & Timmins R. J. 2005.
The jungle cat Felis chaus in Indochina: a threatened population of a widespread and adaptable species.
Biodiversity and Conservation 14, 1263-80.
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) Facts and Information
The following links will take you to websites with well researched and authoritative information on Jungle Cats:
- Jungle Cat Fact Sheet - ARKive
- Jungle Cat Information - ISEC
- Jungle Images and Video Clips in the Wild - ARKive