AFRICAN WILD CAT
Latin Name: Felis silvestris lybica
Afrikaans: Vaalboskat
African Wild Cat
Distribution in South Africa:
 African Wild Cats are widely distributed throughout South Africa.
Habitat:
 A variety of habitats, especially where there is enough shelter like rocks, tall grass, shrubs, thickets, etc.
Habits:
 They are shy and cunning animals found usually solitary except when males and females come together to mate or when females are with young kittens. Females and males are territorial and will defend their territories against other wild cats. They are good tree climbers and often hunt prey in trees. They will also often venture into trees to escape danger.
Day or night:
 Mainly nocturnal.
Difference between
male and female:
 Males are larger, heavier and more robustly built than females.
Mass:
 Male: From 3.5 to about 6.3 kilograms
Female: From 2.4 to about 5.6 kilograms.
Breeding:
 Between 2 and 5 kittens (average about 3) are born at any time during the year with a peak in summer – September to March. The kittens are usually born in burrows of animals like aardvark, warthog, spring hare etc. or in rock crevasses.
Gestation:
 About 2 months
Lifespan:
 In ideal circumstances should roughly be similar to that of a housecat.
Diet - Food and water:
 Rodents, amphibians (frogs and bullfrogs) small reptiles like snakes and skinks, mice, rats, a variety of insects, large spiders, so-called sunspiders or Red Roman spiders (Solifugae), birds up to the size of guineafowl, small mammals like scrub hares, spring hares and even very young lambs of small antelope like Steenbok, also wild fruits. They are water dependent.
Enemies:
 Lion, Leopard, Hyena, Jackal, Serval, African Civet, Caracal, African Wild Dog, Humans, domestic dogs.
Status:
 Abundant, however African Wild Cats interbreed with domestic cats and the interbreeding is a concern as purebred real wild African Wild Cats are in danger of becoming completely interbred in South Africa.
Interesting facts:
 These animals resemble normal housecats with colour variations from dark grey and grey to red brown in colour. The stripes on the legs also vary from greyish to red. African Wild Cats have a reddish brown colour on the back of their ears. They also have very long legs compared to a domestic cat. It has been documented that there are actually two subspecies of African Wild Cats in the South African Region – in the east and northeast they are more grey and darker than those in the extreme west, northwest and Kalahari region where they are more reddish brown and lighter in colour.