Image by Brown Tabby, Unsplash
Introduction of Jungle Cat
The Jungle Cat is a common and abundant species of wild cat.
They are also known as swamp cats and are found throughout a large part of the world, from the Middle East to China and South and Southeast Asia.
Wetlands, swamps, dense vegetation, and deserts are all possible habitats for these animals.
In the desert, they live close to an oasis, to avoid the heat and availability of more prey.
Aside from the jungle, these animals can also be found in cultivation fields and close to human settlements.
They have successfully adapted to artificial environments such as fisheries, agricultural land, and so on.
There are three(3) main subspecies of Jungle Cats that can be found in the wild, and each has its own set of characteristics that are determined by geography.
Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Southeast Asian are the subspecies named after locations.
Jungle Cats are excellent sprinters, capable of reaching speeds of up to 35 km/h over short distances.
Jungle cats are listed as "Least Concern" on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
Scientific Name of Jungle Cat
Felis Chaus
Physical Description of Jungle Cat
Depending on their gender and growth rate, Jungle cats can grow to be between 60 and 75 centimetres in length,
Male jungle cats are typically larger than female jungle cats. They can grow up to a height of 36 cm.
Compared to their eastern counterparts, the Middle Eastern subspecies is slightly larger.
Jungle Cats are available in a variety of colours ranging from sandy yellow to brownish grey.
Their legs are striped with light-brown pigmentation.
They have a small tail with ring-like colouration and darker tips at the end.
Some of the subspecies' ears are pointed upwards, while others are not.
They have prominent moustaches like domestic cats.
Jungle Cats have claws on all four of their paws, which allows them to climb trees more easily.
Jungle Cats are excellent jumpers, with a horizontal jump of 5 to 7 feet being very common.
Life Cycle of Jungle Cat
According to the various studies, Jungle cats have a 15-year average lifespan in the wild.
Irrespective of gender, Jungle Cats are having multiple partners.
Their gestation period is 65 days, and they give birth to a litter of 3 to 6 kittens.
It takes between 10 to 12 days for kittens to be able to open their eyes after they are born with closed eyes.
Mother cats choose isolated locations such as dense bushes, dens, empty tree tanks, or stone cracks for birth and postpartum care, and they keep changing their locations frequently to avoid being preyed upon by predators.
The mother cat eats up kitten waste to eliminate body odour and avoid being tracked by predators.
During the course of a year, jungle cats can have up to two litters.
Kittens are completely reliant on their mothers' milk for the first three months of their lives, and they do not begin to hunt until they are six months old.
Characteristics of Jungle Cat
Jungle cats are solitary animals that prefer to stay alone.
During mating sessions, they are most often found in pairs.
However, there have been some instances where the father and kittens have formed a strong bond that has been observed.
They have excellent swimming abilities.
The Jungle Cats have the ability to hunt for fish in shallow water.
Depending on the situation, they make a variety of vocal sounds.
Jungle Cats are territorial, and they use urine to mark their territory as a biological marking.
The territory of a male cat is usually shared by a number of females.
They also rub their face against stones and trees. In this process, they mark the area with their saliva.
Jungle Cats are excellent stalkers, and they move in complete silence to avoid attention.
They have the ability to jump up to 7 feet vertically to hunt flying birds.
The Jungle Cat, like other big cat species found in the jungle, is not nocturnal and prefers to hunt during the day.
They are most active in the early morning hours and just before sunset.
Diet of Jungle Cat
Despite the fact that jungle cats are primarily carnivorous, however, they also consume fruits, which technically qualifies them as Omnivores.
They eat almost anything that they can get their hands on.
Their diet includes rodents, fish, snakes, hares, and birds, among other things.
The majority of the time, however, they are observed with rodent kills.
They are also scavenging the carcasses of other large predators.
Jungle Cats have also been observed venturing into human settlements in search of discarded food and livestock.
Along with land, they hunt in trees and water as well.
