Help Save Your Kitty's Heritage - protecting the African Wildcat (F.s. lybica)
The African wildcat (AWC) is the ancestor of today’s domestic cat and currently lives throughout the continent of Africa and parts of Asia. The house cat is believed to have been domesticated from AWCs 10,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent. This coincides with early civilization’s rise in agriculture and the need for protection of grain storage from rodents. The beautiful and iconic AWC is currently facing population declines from hybridization with domestic cats, habitat loss, and hunting. Alley Cat Rescue is working to raise awareness and to preserve the genetic integrity of this species through trap-neuter-return programs for local feral cats and public education.
Alley Cat Rescue’s Role:
Alley Cat Rescue has been involved with the protection of the African wildcat for many years, and now has a growing, hands-on program working with local South African organizations, game rangers, and resorts and lodges to implement focused trap-neuter-return (TNR) efforts for domestic cats living along game preserve borders. The intent is to maintain populations of genetically pure African wildcats within these preserves, by preventing interbreeding with domestic cats who live along these bordering territories.
ACR is also working with local scientists who are researching conservation genetics, behavioral ecology, and sociality and social evolution of the African wildcat. Particular projects of study are focused on clarifying the current genetic status of the African wildcat population in terms of its hybridization with feral domestic cats and identifying focal areas for efficient conservation management strategies. The ACR team in South Africa has sterilized and rabies vaccinated hundreds of cats already. Click here to read our most recent press release.
Lineage:
The scientific classification of this small wildcat and its subspecies has been open to considerable debate. In 2017, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the global authority on the status of threatened and endangered species, set up the Cat Classification Task Force to determine the classification of the wildcat. This task force recognized two separate wildcat species: the European wildcat and the African wildcat. The AWC has three subspecies distinguished by their different geographic ranges. The Northern African wildcat lives in eastern, western, and northern Africa; the Southern African wildcat lives in southern Africa; and the Asiatic wildcat lives in southwest and central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Mongolia, and China. Alley Cat Rescue focuses their conservation work on the Southern African wildcat (Felis lybica cafra).
Alley Cat Rescue’s Role:
Alley Cat Rescue has been involved with the protection of the African wildcat for many years, and now has a growing, hands-on program working with local South African organizations, game rangers, and resorts and lodges to implement focused trap-neuter-return (TNR) efforts for domestic cats living along game preserve borders. The intent is to maintain populations of genetically pure African wildcats within these preserves, by preventing interbreeding with domestic cats who live along these bordering territories.
ACR is also working with local scientists who are researching conservation genetics, behavioral ecology, and sociality and social evolution of the African wildcat. Particular projects of study are focused on clarifying the current genetic status of the African wildcat population in terms of its hybridization with feral domestic cats and identifying focal areas for efficient conservation management strategies. The ACR team in South Africa has sterilized and rabies vaccinated hundreds of cats already. Click here to read our most recent press release.
Lineage:
The scientific classification of this small wildcat and its subspecies has been open to considerable debate. In 2017, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the global authority on the status of threatened and endangered species, set up the Cat Classification Task Force to determine the classification of the wildcat. This task force recognized two separate wildcat species: the European wildcat and the African wildcat. The AWC has three subspecies distinguished by their different geographic ranges. The Northern African wildcat lives in eastern, western, and northern Africa; the Southern African wildcat lives in southern Africa; and the Asiatic wildcat lives in southwest and central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Mongolia, and China. Alley Cat Rescue focuses their conservation work on the Southern African wildcat (Felis lybica cafra).
Geographic Range:
The African wildcat has a broad geographic range and can be found across Africa, the Near East, and around the periphery of the Arabian Peninsula. AWC’s living on the Arabian Peninsula along the Caspian Sea hybridized with the Asian wildcat. The Southern AWC lives in Southern Africa, and it is believed that their geographic range begins in Tanzania and Mozambique.
The cat has a high tolerance for diverse environments, inhabiting mountains, plains, grasslands, brushlands, and deserts. The cats have large home ranges which are currently threatened by increased urbanization. One study found that male AWCs had a home range of 7.7 km2 while the female AWCs had a range of 3.5 km2 (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Appearance:
AWCs look similar to domestic cats due to their close genetic makeup, however, the two species do have several distinctions. True AWCs don’t have any white markings on their coat and have unusually long front legs, which causes a loose-limbed gait comparable to the cheetah. They can have a range of coat colors depending on their habitat: from light, sandy stripes in the deserts to dark grey/brown stripes in the forested areas. Regardless of their habitat, AWCs have distinctive black stripes that run horizontal along the cheeks, definitive black rings that circle the legs and tail, and they usually have rusty-red ears. They’re also comparable in size and weight to the domestic cat.
Threats:
The largest threat to future populations of AWCs is hybridization. Studies have found that wildcats and domestic cats can mate and create fertile offspring that are hybrids of the two separate species. The exact rate of hybridization of AWCs is unknown due to limited studies and the difficulty differentiating between the two species. Hybridization threatens the future of the AWC by compromising the species’ genetic integrity.
Although the AWC and domestic cat share similarities, they are two genetically distinguishable species. When an AWC and domestic cat mate, the offspring will not inherit all of the genetic traits of the AWC, potentially including advantageous traits that help them survive. Hybridization can result in a phenomenon called outbreeding depression, where the mating of two genetically distinct individuals results in the offspring having lower chances of survival because of the loss of certain genes.
Hybridization also decreases the number of pure AWCs making conservation efforts more difficult. A study analyzing the genes of AWCs found that the purest individuals live in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Parkㅡthe Kalahari Desert region of Botswana and South Africa, bordering Namibia to the westㅡwhere the area is protected. AWCs with much higher rates of hybridization were found in Kruger National Park in South Africa, where Alley Cat Rescue focuses their conservation efforts (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Another issue with hybridization is the potential for the spread of diseases. Feral cats have transmitted illnesses such as feline leukemia, feline immunodeficiency virus, calicivirus, and coronavirus to AWCs. It is important to prevent the spread of diseases, especially for a species whose numbers are already declining.
AWCs also face threats from habitat loss. Continued land development pushes the AWCs into smaller and increasingly isolated habitats. In these smaller habitats, AWCs are more likely to come into contact with both humans and domestic cats. There has been a rise in conflict with humans, particularly farmers, who shoot the cats for believing they kill livestock. AWCs also come into contact with domestic cats more frequently, which increases the rate of hybridization. One study on the genetic analysis of AWCs found that individuals were more genetically pure the farther away lived from humans (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Conservation Status:
The wildcat, including subspecies of AWCs, is listed as “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) though the organization does note that wildcat populations are declining. Currently, the wildcat is the most common and widely distributed wild felid. Wildcats are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). CITES is an international agreement among countries to protect threatened and endangered species by enforcing international trade standards. As an Appendix II species, the wildcat is not immediately threatened with extinction but does need trade sanctions in order to ensure their survival.
One reason AWCs are listed as “Least Concern” is because their exact population numbers are unknown. There is a huge need for additional research to track the number of AWCs currently living in Africa. It has been difficult to estimate their population numbers for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the AWCs look akin to domestic cats and researchers cannot always identify an AWC simply by appearance. Researchers have attempted to humanely trap AWCs to analyze them further, but AWCs are very trap savvy. One study that attempted to humanely trap AWCs found that it took 73 trap nights to catch just one AWC. Additionally, AWCs spend considerable time hiding in bushes, making it hard for researchers to locate them. IUCN notes, “Future research on hybridization levels and fitness consequences of introgression may warrant a reassessment of the Wild Cat as a threatened species...” (Yamaguchi et al., 2015).
The African wildcat has a broad geographic range and can be found across Africa, the Near East, and around the periphery of the Arabian Peninsula. AWC’s living on the Arabian Peninsula along the Caspian Sea hybridized with the Asian wildcat. The Southern AWC lives in Southern Africa, and it is believed that their geographic range begins in Tanzania and Mozambique.
The cat has a high tolerance for diverse environments, inhabiting mountains, plains, grasslands, brushlands, and deserts. The cats have large home ranges which are currently threatened by increased urbanization. One study found that male AWCs had a home range of 7.7 km2 while the female AWCs had a range of 3.5 km2 (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Appearance:
AWCs look similar to domestic cats due to their close genetic makeup, however, the two species do have several distinctions. True AWCs don’t have any white markings on their coat and have unusually long front legs, which causes a loose-limbed gait comparable to the cheetah. They can have a range of coat colors depending on their habitat: from light, sandy stripes in the deserts to dark grey/brown stripes in the forested areas. Regardless of their habitat, AWCs have distinctive black stripes that run horizontal along the cheeks, definitive black rings that circle the legs and tail, and they usually have rusty-red ears. They’re also comparable in size and weight to the domestic cat.
Threats:
The largest threat to future populations of AWCs is hybridization. Studies have found that wildcats and domestic cats can mate and create fertile offspring that are hybrids of the two separate species. The exact rate of hybridization of AWCs is unknown due to limited studies and the difficulty differentiating between the two species. Hybridization threatens the future of the AWC by compromising the species’ genetic integrity.
Although the AWC and domestic cat share similarities, they are two genetically distinguishable species. When an AWC and domestic cat mate, the offspring will not inherit all of the genetic traits of the AWC, potentially including advantageous traits that help them survive. Hybridization can result in a phenomenon called outbreeding depression, where the mating of two genetically distinct individuals results in the offspring having lower chances of survival because of the loss of certain genes.
Hybridization also decreases the number of pure AWCs making conservation efforts more difficult. A study analyzing the genes of AWCs found that the purest individuals live in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Parkㅡthe Kalahari Desert region of Botswana and South Africa, bordering Namibia to the westㅡwhere the area is protected. AWCs with much higher rates of hybridization were found in Kruger National Park in South Africa, where Alley Cat Rescue focuses their conservation efforts (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Another issue with hybridization is the potential for the spread of diseases. Feral cats have transmitted illnesses such as feline leukemia, feline immunodeficiency virus, calicivirus, and coronavirus to AWCs. It is important to prevent the spread of diseases, especially for a species whose numbers are already declining.
AWCs also face threats from habitat loss. Continued land development pushes the AWCs into smaller and increasingly isolated habitats. In these smaller habitats, AWCs are more likely to come into contact with both humans and domestic cats. There has been a rise in conflict with humans, particularly farmers, who shoot the cats for believing they kill livestock. AWCs also come into contact with domestic cats more frequently, which increases the rate of hybridization. One study on the genetic analysis of AWCs found that individuals were more genetically pure the farther away lived from humans (Le Roux et al., 2014).
Conservation Status:
The wildcat, including subspecies of AWCs, is listed as “Least Concern” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) though the organization does note that wildcat populations are declining. Currently, the wildcat is the most common and widely distributed wild felid. Wildcats are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). CITES is an international agreement among countries to protect threatened and endangered species by enforcing international trade standards. As an Appendix II species, the wildcat is not immediately threatened with extinction but does need trade sanctions in order to ensure their survival.
One reason AWCs are listed as “Least Concern” is because their exact population numbers are unknown. There is a huge need for additional research to track the number of AWCs currently living in Africa. It has been difficult to estimate their population numbers for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the AWCs look akin to domestic cats and researchers cannot always identify an AWC simply by appearance. Researchers have attempted to humanely trap AWCs to analyze them further, but AWCs are very trap savvy. One study that attempted to humanely trap AWCs found that it took 73 trap nights to catch just one AWC. Additionally, AWCs spend considerable time hiding in bushes, making it hard for researchers to locate them. IUCN notes, “Future research on hybridization levels and fitness consequences of introgression may warrant a reassessment of the Wild Cat as a threatened species...” (Yamaguchi et al., 2015).
Our latest Press Release announcing our efforts to save the pure African wildcat's lineage:
Mount Rainier, MD, 6/18/19 - Nearly three hundred free-roaming cats have been sterilized and vaccinated by Alley Cat Rescue’s international partnership to protect African wildcats in South Africa. The project is protecting vulnerable populations of genetically pure African wildcats (AWCs) from hybridization by sterilizing free-roaming domestic and stray cats who live around their habitat in the Kruger National Park.
The effort, spearheaded by Alley Cat Rescue (ACR), is bringing South Africa-based rescue and cat advocacy groups together around a common goal. With the support of local veterinarians and scientists, domestic cats from the targeted border areas will receive health exams and rabies vaccinations, and will also be spayed or neutered. The park’s borders in South Africa are where AWCs and domestic cats from nearby urban and settled areas can most often come into contact.
Safeguarding the genetic integrity of the wild cat is supported by Invasive Species Specialist, Dr. Llewellyn Foxcroft, who said: “Outside the park, one option is to try capture, neuter and return feral cats,” Llewellyn explains, “The reasoning here is that if a cat is removed, another will fill its home range and thus the problem is not solved. However, by returning cats which cannot breed, the home range is maintained and other cats are naturally excluded from the territory.” This approach is, however, resource intensive. ACR is working to build the infrastructure and revenue stream needed to ensure that the program will be ongoing.
ACR is following the advice of Dr. Foxcroft and using the Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) method to capture, treat, and then return the cats to their territory. TNR is widely practiced in the U.S. and abroad and is known as the safest and most humane way to manage populations of outdoor cats.
“The African wildcat is the ancestor of our domestic cats, the one who started our modern love affair with cats,” said Louise Holton, President of Alley Cat Rescue and a native of South Africa. “Small wildcats around the world are threatened by numerous factors, including habitat loss, hunting and interbreeding. With so much environmental change happening, it’s important we do everything in our power to protect biodiversity right now,” Holton continued.
For the multi-year project, Alley Cat Rescue is spearheading the efforts in South Africa, as well as providing humane traps. The project has also received generous support from the Ayers Wild Cat Conservation Fund, a foundation run by Helaine and Jon Ayers. Jon Ayers is the CEO of IDEXX Laboratories, a multi-national company that produces products and services for various animal-related applications.
ACR is currently looking for additional pharmaceutical companies in South Africa, as well as cat food companies, to get involved and provide further support for the growing project. A similar strategy is taking place in Scotland to help the endangered Scottish wildcat.
The African wildcat lives throughout the continent of Africa and parts of Asia and the Middle East. It is currently listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international agreement among countries to protect threatened and endangered species. As with other Appendix II species, African wildcats are not immediately threatened with extinction, but do need protection in order to ensure their survival. ###
Mount Rainier, MD, 6/18/19 - Nearly three hundred free-roaming cats have been sterilized and vaccinated by Alley Cat Rescue’s international partnership to protect African wildcats in South Africa. The project is protecting vulnerable populations of genetically pure African wildcats (AWCs) from hybridization by sterilizing free-roaming domestic and stray cats who live around their habitat in the Kruger National Park.
The effort, spearheaded by Alley Cat Rescue (ACR), is bringing South Africa-based rescue and cat advocacy groups together around a common goal. With the support of local veterinarians and scientists, domestic cats from the targeted border areas will receive health exams and rabies vaccinations, and will also be spayed or neutered. The park’s borders in South Africa are where AWCs and domestic cats from nearby urban and settled areas can most often come into contact.
Safeguarding the genetic integrity of the wild cat is supported by Invasive Species Specialist, Dr. Llewellyn Foxcroft, who said: “Outside the park, one option is to try capture, neuter and return feral cats,” Llewellyn explains, “The reasoning here is that if a cat is removed, another will fill its home range and thus the problem is not solved. However, by returning cats which cannot breed, the home range is maintained and other cats are naturally excluded from the territory.” This approach is, however, resource intensive. ACR is working to build the infrastructure and revenue stream needed to ensure that the program will be ongoing.
ACR is following the advice of Dr. Foxcroft and using the Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) method to capture, treat, and then return the cats to their territory. TNR is widely practiced in the U.S. and abroad and is known as the safest and most humane way to manage populations of outdoor cats.
“The African wildcat is the ancestor of our domestic cats, the one who started our modern love affair with cats,” said Louise Holton, President of Alley Cat Rescue and a native of South Africa. “Small wildcats around the world are threatened by numerous factors, including habitat loss, hunting and interbreeding. With so much environmental change happening, it’s important we do everything in our power to protect biodiversity right now,” Holton continued.
For the multi-year project, Alley Cat Rescue is spearheading the efforts in South Africa, as well as providing humane traps. The project has also received generous support from the Ayers Wild Cat Conservation Fund, a foundation run by Helaine and Jon Ayers. Jon Ayers is the CEO of IDEXX Laboratories, a multi-national company that produces products and services for various animal-related applications.
ACR is currently looking for additional pharmaceutical companies in South Africa, as well as cat food companies, to get involved and provide further support for the growing project. A similar strategy is taking place in Scotland to help the endangered Scottish wildcat.
The African wildcat lives throughout the continent of Africa and parts of Asia and the Middle East. It is currently listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international agreement among countries to protect threatened and endangered species. As with other Appendix II species, African wildcats are not immediately threatened with extinction, but do need protection in order to ensure their survival. ###
Our previous work on the African Wildcat campaign:
UPDATE 2010: Thanks to funding from the Endangered Wildlife Trust, SAN Parks, DWNP Botswana and other foundations, a study on the African wildcat in the southern Kalahari Desert was made possible. The study focused on conservation genetics, behavioral ecology, and sociality and social evolution in the ancestor of the domestic cat.
According to the study which began in 2005, “In spite of its wide range and popular profile no field study on the African wildcat has been published and there is a great paucity of knowledge on the ecology and behaviour of the species. There is a need to understand its basic biology, both from the conservation and scientific viewpoints…A recent study in southern Africa found that the African wildcat and the domestic cat are indeed genetically distinct…This enhances the conservation status of the African wildcat and emphasises the need to keep the two species apart.”
Upon completing her research in the Kalahari in 2010, ecologist Marna Herbst spoke with Alley Cat Rescue saying in an email, “all the cats from my study site inside the park were pure wild cats and the AWC and the domestic cats were definitely two separate entities. However, on the border of the park a semi tame AWC mother had three kittens…and those…were all three hybrids.” Ms. Herbst goes on to explain that, “I think it is important especially on the borders of parks and nature reserves where local communities do have pet cats but not the means to take them to a vet that hybridization can occur and that is the areas we should focus on.”
Ms. Herbst concludes in her research paper “hybridisation is not frequent in the southern Kalahari. The main threats such as persecution, accidental road killings, habitat loss and fragmentation still persists for the African wild cat in southern Africa. Habitat modification and animal translocation will increase the rate of hybridisation and introgression. The fact that evidence of admixed individuals is already present raises the conservation concerns for the protection of wild cats in southern Africa.”
Ms. Herbst is now assisting Dr. Llewellyn Foxcroft, known for his expertise with alien plants, in gathering genetic samples from AWCs living in Kruger National Park. The main objective of this project is to clarify the current genetic status of the African wild cat population in terms of its hybridization with feral domestic cats and to identify focal areas for efficient conservation management strategies. Marna mentions that gathering genetic samples of pet cats in nearby communities would help determine where hybridization is occurring and that genetic testing of AWCs should also be conducted in all national parks in South Africa.
In December of 2010, ACR President and Founder, Louise Holton, visited South Africa to see the progress being made to help the African wildcat (and local feral cats). She spent several nights at the Pilanesberg Game Reserve, where AWCs have been seen taking residence. Unfortunately, Louise did not get a glimpse of any wildcats while she was there, but she was greeted by none other than a feral cat. Rangers say feral cats have taken up residence in two camps on the reserve and their populations are growing. This reality only proves that TNR programs are desperately needed to prevent hybridization.
The good news is that Louise also visited nearby Sun City (the Las Vegas of South Africa) and met with staff members who have been (along with faculty from the University of Pretoria) TNRing the feral cats who live on the resort’s property. She was thrilled to see that a portion of the resort’s horse stables have been converted into a sterilization clinic and that posters hang throughout the resort to educate visitors on the importance of spay/neuter and properly caring for community cats.
After hearing that almost all of the Sun City feral cats have been TNRed, Louise sprung into action, putting the Sun City staff in contact with the managers at Pilanesberg Reserve. Together, Sun City and Pilanesberg Game Reserve are now devising a plan to sterilize the feral cats living on the reserve! Sterilizing feral cats on game reserves not only protects AWCs from hybridization, it also improves the lives of the feral cats and offers a humane, nonlethal solution for managing their populations.
To ensure the feral cats living on Pilanesberg are TNRed and the African wildcats are protected from extinction, Alley Cat Rescue has provided financial assistance towards this project. We know every little bit helps and we will continue to support those who are working to save our cat’s ancestor; There is much more that needs to be done so please, show your support before it’s too late!
UPDATE: We are excited to announce the Onderstepoort Veterinary School now has a mobile vet clinic! The clinic is being operated out of the Hans Hoheisen Wildlife Research Station near the Orpen Gate into Kruger National Park. Veterinary students completing their last year (clinical studies) live and study at this research station. Many of the students gain hands-on field experience by working in the mobile clinic. Currently, the mobile clinic is being used to sterilize and treat livestock animals and family pets (most of which are dogs), along the park’s border. However, Alley Cat Rescue is working to include treating cats by using the mobile clinic to operate a TNR program for feral and free-roaming cats.
We have begun contacting private game reserves along the western border of KrugerPark to locate where large populations of feral cats may be living, so we can target what areas to start working in. Again, Dr. Marna Herbst and several of her colleagues, including Dr. Llewellyn Foxcroft, have stated that hybridization is more likely to occur on the borders of parks (private reserves), where more human activity takes place.
These private reserves are home to countless resorts and lodges for tourists, as well as local farmers. These camps and farms attract feral cats looking for food and shelter, and many staff members take up caring for feral cats who frequent their camps. It is especially important to sterilize these feral cats who are in close proximity to the African wildcats living in the park. We want to protect the AWCs living in the park from hybridization, so their population stays true.
As always, funding is needed to keep this project moving, so please consider giving a tax-deductible donation. We need to purchase traps and medical supplies and we will need to cover the cost of transportation and maintaining the mobile clinic. Every little bit helps, so please join us in the fight to save our cats’ ancient ancestor, before it is too late! Show your generosity and support for the African wildcat and our special project in South Africa by making a tax-deductible online donation! Please remember to note that your donation is for our African wildcat Project, and thank you for your continued support!
References:
“African wildcat.” (n.d.). Retrieved from https://wildcatconservation.org/wild-cats/africa/african-wildcat.
Driscoll, C.A., et al. (2007). “The Near Eastern Origin of Cat Domestication.” Science Express, 1-4.
Le Roux, J.J., Foxcroft, L.C., Herbst, M. & MacFadyen, S. (2014). “Genetic analysis shows low levels of hybridization between African wildcats (Felis silvestris lybica) and domestic cats (F.s. catus) in South Africa.” Ecology and Evolution, 5(2), 288-299.
Oliveira, R., Godinho, R., Randi, E. & Alves, P.C. (2008). “Hybridization versus conservation: Are domestic cats threatening the genetic integrity of wildcats (Felis sivestris silvestris) in Iberian Peninsula?” Biological Sciences, 363, 1505.
Randi, E., Pierpaoli, M., Beaumont, M., Ragni, B. & Sforzi, A. (2001). “Genetic Identification of Wild and Domestic Cats (Felis silvestris) and Their Hybrids Using Bayesian Clustering Methods.” Molecular Biology and Evolution, 18(9), 1679-1693.
“Wildcat.” (n.d.). Retrieved from https://wildcatconservation.org/wild-cats/wildcat.
Yamaguchi, N., Kitchener, A., Driscoll, C. & Nussberger, B. (2015). “Felis silvestris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015:” e.T60354712A50652361.