What level of protected animal is the leopard cat in China? Explained in one article
The leopard cat's body size is similar to that of an ordinary domestic cat, and its fur comes in many colors. Leopard cats in the south are yellow, while those in the north are silver-gray. The chest and abdomen are white. The leopard cat's spots are generally black. The leopard cat is not commonly seen and is also a nationally protected animal, so what level of protected animal is the leopard cat?
1. What level of protected animal is the leopard cat?
The wild leopard cat is a national second-class protected animal. It is listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) 2012 Red List of Threatened Species ver 3.1——Least Concern (LC). It is listed in the China Red Data Book of Endangered Animals at the level: Vulnerable. It is listed in the Convention on Washington (CITES) as a Class II protected animal.
2. Characteristics of the leopard cat
The leopard cat is slightly larger than a domestic cat, with a body length of 36-90 cm, a tail length of 15-37 cm, and a weight of 3-8 kg. The tail length is more than half of the body length. The head shape is round. From the head to the shoulders there are 4 brown stripes, and from the inner edges of the two eyes there is one white stripe extending upward on each side. The back of the ears has pale yellow spots, and the body hair on the entire back is light brown, covered with brown to light brown spots. The chest, abdomen, and inner sides of the limbs are white, the back of the tail has brown spots or half-rings, and the tail tip is black or dark gray.
2. The leopard cat's living environment
The leopard cat mainly inhabits mountain forest areas, suburban scrub, and areas near villages at the forest edge. Its distribution altitude can range from low-altitude coastal zones all the way to high mountain forest areas at an altitude of 3000 m. It is most numerous in semi-open savanna scrub habitats, while it is less numerous in dense primary forests, cultivated artificial forests (such as rubber plantations, tea plantations, etc.), and open plain farmland, and it is almost absent from arid deserts and sand dunes.
The leopard cat is a nationally protected animal and is very rare, and it also cannot be purchased at will like a pet cat. If you encounter a wild leopard cat, you should call the police promptly to protect rare wild animals.