Geoffroy's cat
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Geoffroy's cat (Leopardus geoffroyi) is a small wild cat native to the southern and central regions of South America. It is around the size of a domestic cat. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List due to it being widespread and abundant over its range.<ref name=iucn />
TaxonomyEdit
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Geoffroy's cat is named after the 19th century French zoologist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1772–1844). It was identified as Felis geoffroyi in 1844 by French naturalists Alcide d'Orbigny and Paul Gervais on the basis of three specimens that d'Orbigny had collected on the banks of the Rio Negro in Patagonia during his travels in South America between 1826 and 1833.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Five subspecies have been described based on geographic dispersement:<ref name=msw3/>
- L. g. geoffroyi: Central Argentina
- L. g. euxantha: Northern Argentina, Western Bolivia
- L. g. leucobapta: Patagonia
- L. g. paraguae: Paraguay, Southeastern Brazil, Uruguay, Northern Argentina
- L. g. salinarum: Northwestern and Central Argentina
Since 2017, Geoffroy's cat is considered a monotypic species.<ref name=catsg>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Genetic studies have shown that Geoffroy's cat is most closely related to the kodkod.<ref name=Pecon-Slattery>Template:Cite journal</ref>
CharacteristicsEdit
The Geoffroy's cat is about the size of a domestic cat, but has numerous black spots and dark bands on the cheeks, head and neck as well as on the tail and limbs. The background colour of its fur varies from a brownish-yellow coat in the northern part of its range to a more grayish coat in the south. The underbelly hair is cream-coloured or even white. The backs of the ears are black with white spots. Black individuals are common.<ref name=WCoW>Template:Cite book</ref>
Its size is about Template:Cvt in head and body with a relatively short tail of about Template:Cvt. It weighs between Template:Cvt, though individuals up to Template:Cvt have been reported. Males are usually larger than females, and Geoffroy's cat in the south are larger than those from the north.<ref name=WCoW/> It has a bite force quotient at the canine tip of 106.3.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Distribution and habitatEdit
The Geoffroy's cat is distributed in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. It inhabits pampas and savanna landscapes in the Gran Chaco from southern Bolivia to the Straits of Magellan ranging at elevations from sea level up to Template:Cvt in the Andes. It prefers open woodland or scrubland with plenty of cover, but also occurs in grasslands and marshy areas.<ref name=iucn /> It is thought to be rare in Chile.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Ecology and behaviourEdit
The Geoffroy's cat is nocturnal and a solitary hunter that contacts conspecifics only during the mating season. Geoffroy's cats have been observed to stand up on their hind legs to scan the surrounding landscape and use their tail as a support, an unusual behaviour among cats. It is able to climb trees but rarely does, except to leave faeces to scent mark its territory.<ref name=WCoW/> It preys primarily on rodents, hares, other small mammals, birds, snakes, small lizards, insects, and occasionally frogs and fish.<ref name=WCoW/> Females maintain home ranges about Template:Cvt in size, while males range over up to Template:Cvt.<ref name=WCoW/>
ReproductionEdit
The breeding season for Geoffroy's cats lasts from October to March. During this time, the female comes into estrus for periods of up to twelve days, between three and five weeks apart. Mating during this time is brief and frequent, often taking place on a high ledge or similar site.<ref name=WCoW/>
Gestation lasts for 72–78 days.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Most births occur between December and May. Litters consist of one to three kittens, and one or two is more common.<ref name=nowell>Template:Cite book</ref>
The kittens are born blind and helpless, weighing about Template:Cvt, and develop rather slowly compared to the domestic cat. The eyes open after eight to nineteen days, and they begin to eat solid food at six or seven weeks.<ref name=WCoW/> Kittens become independent of their mother at around eight months, but are generally not sexually mature until 18 months for females and 24 months for males.<ref name=nowell/>
ConservationEdit
From the 1960s to the 1980s, Geoffroy's cats were hunted extensively for their pelts for the international fur trade, but little trade took place after 1988 and the species was upgraded to CITES Appendix I status in 1992.<ref name=nowell/><ref name=iucn /> Legislation introduced in the late 1980s made hunting and domestic trade of Geoffroy's cat's pelts illegal in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. International trade in Cites Appendix I listed species is now prohibited, except for non-commercial purposes.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
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