April Species Spotlight: Pallas's Cat

Alongside our Facebook Group the Small WildCat Resource Group will be showcasing one of the 32 species of small cats every month as our 'Species Spotlight'.

The Pallas's Cat - Overview & Distribution

Last month for April our chosen cat was the Pallas's Cat, partly because 23rd April is International Pallas's Cat Day! The Pallas's Cat, also known as the Manul, is unique among cats, taxonomically it is cast out on its own from the other cats, it has the longest and densest fur of any cat and is incredibly well adapted to the extreme weather fluctuations that occur throughout its wild range which is reflected in by the huge change in their summer and winter coats.

Since 2017 the IUCN Cat Classification Task Force has recognised two subspecies:

• Asian Pallas's Cat Otocolobus manul manul

  Found throughout the western and northern part of central Asia from Iran to Mongolia.

• Tibetan Pallas's Cat Otocolobus manul nigripectus

  Found in the Himalayas from Kashmir to Bhutan.

This cat has a very wide range and are found throughout Central Asia from as far west as Afghanistan and Pakistan through to Northern India, Mongolia, China and Southern Russia. They are found mainly in valleys and rocky areas favouring stone outcrops and inhabit high altitude steppe grasslands and semi desert areas. This rocky cover presents them with plenty of hiding opportunities as they will avoid open habitats due to predation from other predators such as lynxes. The shrub steppe and rocky slopes provide them with plenty of hiding cover, this is important as they are not fast runners and because of this they rely on their camouflage to hide themselves from predators, as such they try to avoid open habitats. They have a strong dependency on marmot and fox burrows as well as rock cavities which they use for raising young and for shelter from poor weather.

Diet

Their diet consists largely of small mammals, birds, insects, reptiles and where possible they rely heavily on populations of pika, a small rabbit-like mammal. They hunt largely through ambush, as they try to get as close to prey as they possibly can, as they are poor runners and unable to chase prey for large distances. They have not been known to kill any livestock or poultry but they have been seen scavenging from carcasses that they have found.

Natural Behaviour

Pallas’s cats are solitary cats, known for having very large home ranges for a cat of their size with anywhere between 20-200km2 typical for adult males in Mongolia. These home ranges often overlap with those of several females whose territories will be smaller but will sometimes overlap with other males too. They are likely to be territorial and injuries and wounds seen on male Pallas’s cats indicate that fighting has occurred. They are highly seasonal breeders with females coming into season for short periods of 24-48 hours around January to March with births around March to May with a gestation of around 66-75 days, known for having very large litters with 8 being reported. They are largely crepuscular but can be active throughout the whole day if hunting.

Pallas's Cat Husbandry and Care

With a focus on the United Kingdom, success of keeping and breeding Pallas's Cats has only really occurred over the last 30 years. Port Lympne and Howletts Wild Animal Parks were one of the first to focus on this unusual cat with several other collections having had success over the years. Currently only five UK collections hold this species. As a cold weather species often enclosures will be built in an 'aviary style' incorporating many natural features such as logs, rocks and grasses as well as different substrates such as gravel, sand and grasses. They are not an animal that really requires any heating or indoor space but collections will vary as to the facilities that they offer. As solitary cats it is common for collections to keep their males and females separate outside of breeding season.

As seasonal breeders, they have been challenging within zoos and the last successful Pallas's Cat birth in the UK was at the Cotswold Wildlife Park in Oxfordshire. The CWP female reared two kittens who have since gone onto other collections in the UK and Europe and have been paired up now as part of the EEP. For more details please look at the link here on the website. Rare Pallas’s Cat kittens make their debut at Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens : Cotswold Wildlife Park and Gardens.

Diets in captivity can vary with most collections feeding at least once, sometimes twice a day. Common food items include chicks, quail, mice, rats and other rodent species with meat chunks from chicken, horse and beef also given in some collections. Freezing food before for at least two days is important to reduce the risk of toxoplasmosis, which these cats are very susceptible too. Whole food items are crucial as they give the cat access to bones and all body parts they are important nutritionally. Daily food intake can vary but at an average of around 200-300g per day.

Pallas's Cat Conservation

The Pallas's Cat is rarely seen and little is known about their wild behaviour. They are listed by the IUCN as Least Concern, but are listed at a higher concern in some countries at a regional level. Although they are unlikely to go globally extinct in their near future they suffer from numerous threats including habitat degradation and fragmentation which has caused small isolated populations that are still declining as well as declining prey populations and predation from domestic dogs.

For more information on conservation strategy and conservation projects please look on the website for the Pallas's Cat Working Group (AKA Manul Working Group) https://savemanul.org/ .

For more information on the Pallas's Cat International Conservation Alliance (PICA) please look on their website https://pallascats.org/ . PICA works to support the PCWG through raising awareness and collaborating with various zoo partners and supporters. Both organisations work alongside the Pallas's Cat Conservation Strategy. Understanding and supporting these wild populations has never been so important and if your zoo is not involved in supporting this species and you do hold them, we at the SWCRG urge you to make the connection!