5 Little Known But Really Beautiful Wild Cats
The distribution of felines reaches a world level with the domestic cat. The other species, on the other hand, prefer mountains, forests and deserts, at a safe distance from civilization. We invite you to discover in the next few lines some little known but fascinating and beautiful wild felines.
Felines: the aristocrats of the animal kingdom
Over time, felines have been the protagonists of numerous superstitions and legends. Without going too far, in Ancient Egypt cats were considered sacred animals, to the point of being mummified with their owners in order to accompany them in their subsequent lives.
Big American cats, such as the jaguar or the puma, have been recognized by native civilizations as the reincarnations of some deities. Their images have been used as symbols of strength and power over several generations.
Among the Native Americans, in fact, only the authoritative and important people had the honor of wearing the skins of these animals.
5 little-known wild cats
Panthers, lions and jaguars are not the only representatives of this family. There are many little-known, but equally fascinating, wild felines. We present some of them below.
Manul, one of the little-known wild cats of Central Asia
The Otocolobus manul lives in the steppes of central Asia, up to altitudes of 5000 meters above the sea level, where it can survive thanks to its abundant hair that protects it from extreme cold and wind.
Within the Felidae family , the manul or pallas or steppe cat is the specimen that comes closest to the concept of “aristocratic feline”. It has short legs, a massive and plump body, a tail with black rings, long and hairy. Nonetheless, his coat is very beautiful, with shades ranging from ash gray to red.
The golden cat of Borneo
The Catopuma badia is the endemic feline of the forests of the island of Borneo. It is small in size, barely reaches 60 centimeters (not counting the tail), and weighs around three kilos.
Very few specimens have been sighted by the human eye, which is why it continues to be virtually unknown to us.
The yaguarondi, among the little known and strangest wild cats
Herpailurus yagouaroundi is another little known American feline. Although its name may suggest a kinship with the jaguar, the two animals have nothing in common, except for the areas they inhabit.
The color of its coat is uniform and can be black, leaden gray or coppery. Due to its shape and its movements it resembles a weasel more than a feline.
He is a very bad climber and never ventures into dense woods. Besides that, he is very shy and rarely lets himself be seen by man. Perhaps this is why he is not considered a worthy representative of the aristocracy that is the subject of this article.
The curious clouded leopard
The Neofelis nebula inhabits the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It has the habit of climbing trees and it is possible to spot it moving with agility among the branches thanks to its long tail which gives it excellent balance.
The Formosa clouded leopard is a subspecies that lives on the island from which it takes its name and which has been considered extinct for decades. Recently, however, some sightings have been reported.
The ocelot, one of the largest little known wild cats
Among the largest felines of the American continent, almost one and a half meters long, we find the Leopardus pardalis . It has gray hair with red hues, and is almost invisible among the vegetation in the moonlight. It is a nocturnal animal, like most of its family members.
And in Italy?
Certainly. The Italian fauna is very rich and diversified, therefore the native felines could not be missing. In our country two types of wild cats are encountered: the lynx, present in the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, and the European wild cat, perhaps less emblematic but equally majestic.
