Bay Cat

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Bay Cat[1]
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[2]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Carnivora
Family:	Felidae
Genus:	Catopuma
Species:	C. badia
Binomial name
Catopuma badia (Gray, 1874)

The Bay Cat (Catopuma badia), also known as Bornean Cat, Bornean Red Cat, Bornean Marbled Cat, Borneo-katze, Chat Bai, Gato Rojo de Borneo, Kucing Kalimantan, Kucing Merahor or Bornean Bay Cat, is a small feline endemic to the island of Borneo. The Bay Cat and the Asian Golden Cat (Catopuma temminckii) are the only members of the genus Catopuma.

There is not much known about the Bay Cat due to its rarity. Until 1998, live specimens of this animal had not even been caught on camera. Nearly everything that is known about this cat is based on about twelve specimens, the first of which was collected by Alfred Russel Wallace in 1855 in Sarawak.^{[citation needed]} Later specimens were collected in 1874, 1992, and 1998, along with a few skins obtained from trappers.

Appearance

Captive Bay cat in Sarawak.

The Bay Cat's fur is usually reddish brown, but there is also a grey colour variant, but it is usually paler on the underparts. The ears are short and rounded, set well down on the sides of the head. The body is faintly speckled with black markings, and spots on the lighter golden brown underside and limbs. The short, rounded head is dark greyish brown with two dark stripes originating from the corner of each eye, and the back of the head has a dark ‘M’ shaped marking. The backs of the ears are dark greyish. The underside of the chin is white and there are two faint brown stripes on the cheeks. Their long, tapering tail has a yellowish streak down its length on the underside, becoming pure white at the tip, which is marked with a small black spot. Body proportions and the extremely long tail give it the look of the new world jaguarundi.

For a time, it was unknown whether the Bay Cat was a unique species or merely a smaller island form of the Asian Golden Cat. With blood samples taken from the 1992 specimen, genetic testing has confirmed that they are indeed a unique species, and therefore a highly endangered one. No subspecies have been described. The Bay Cat has a length of 55 cm (22 in), plus a 35 cm (14 in) tail. The weight is only about 2.3 to 4.5 kg (5 to 10 lbs). The Bay Cat has 1-3 kittens born after 70-75 day gestation period, being sexually mature at 18 to 24 months.

Evolution

Recent analyses W. E. Johnson et al. (1999) indicate that the Bay Cat diverged from a common ancestor with the Asian Golden Cat an estimated 4.9-5.3 million years ago, well before the geological separation of Borneo from other islands on the Sunda Shelf some 10,000-15,000 years ago.

Diet

This wild cat hunts at night for birds, rodents, and monkeys. In addition to hunting, the Bay Cat is also is a nocturnal scavenger, and will often eat carrion when available.

Habitat

As its English name suggests, the Bornean Red Cat is confined to the island of Borneo. Found in the dense tropical forests up to an altitude of 900 metres, one unconfirmed sighting being at 1,800m; it has been observed in rocky limestone outcrops and recently in logged dipterocarp forest. At least three specimens were found near rivers, but this is probably due to collector convenience rather than evidence of habitat preference. The latest individual to be caught was on the Sarawak, Indonesian border but other records are widely distributed in the northern half of the island. It has been found in Kalimantan (Borneo), Sabah and Sarawak^[3].

Conservation status

Due to significant habitat loss in Borneo, the Bay Cat has been only recently reclassified as endangered by the IUCN in 2005, after being classified "data deficient" only ten years before. Now that the cat is fully protected over most of its range, CITES has recently placed the Bornean Bay Cat on Appendix II, due to lack of data. Although on paper Borneo has 25 wildlife reserves, only three are actually in existence, with the others only proposed. All of these reserves have been encroached upon by human settlement and logging. Unfortunately local trappers and animal dealers are also well aware that foreign zoos and breeding facilities will pay US $10,000 or more for a live animal. There are no Bay Cats officially in captivity.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pardofelis badia