Editing Rusty-spotted cat

{{Short description|Small wild cat species}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Rusty-spotted cat
| image = Rusty spotted cat 1.jpg
| status = NT
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Prionailurus rubiginosus'' |name-list-style=amp |author=Mukherjee, S. |author2=Duckworth, J.W. |author3=Silva, A. |author4=Appel, A. |author5=Kittle, A. |date=2016 |page=e.T18149A50662471 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T18149A50662471.en |access-date=16 January 2022}}</ref>
 | status2 = CITES_A1 
 | status2_system = CITES 
 | status2_ref = <ref name=iucn/>
| genus = Prionailurus
| species = rubiginosus<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Wozencraft |pages=543–544 |id=14000195 |heading=Species ''Prionailurus rubiginosus''}}</ref>
| authority = ([[Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire|Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire]], 1834)
| range_map = Rusty-spottedCat distribution.jpg
| range_map_caption = {{leftlegend|#D27122|range of the rusty-spotted cat in 2016<ref name=iucn />}}
}}

The '''rusty-spotted cat''' ('''''Prionailurus rubiginosus''''') is one of the [[felidae|cat]] family's smallest members, of which historical records are known only from [[India]] and [[Sri Lanka]].<ref name="Pocock39">{{cite book |author=Pocock, R. I. |year=1939 |title=The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma |volume=Mammalia. – Volume 1 |location=London |publisher=Taylor and Francis Ltd. |chapter=''Prionailurus rubiginosus'' Geoffroy. The Rusty-spotted Cat |pages=276–280 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/PocockMammalia1/pocock1#page/n351/mode/2up}}</ref> In 2012, it was also recorded in the western [[Terai]] of [[Nepal]].<ref name="appel">{{Cite journal |last=Appel |first=A. |year=2016 |title=The first records of Rusty-spotted Cat in Nepal |url=https://www.dropbox.com/s/pdy1unqdzizsvcn/SWCCN2016_02.pdf?dl=1 |journal=Small Wild Cat Conservation News |issue=2 |pages=8–10 |access-date=2018-02-10 |archive-date=2023-08-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230812033020/https://uc83ef3e442a457f2754ff97932b.dl.dropboxusercontent.com/cd/0/get/CBpOEDx4-AvQCeNClp6BBKMH7wqJ_OieuuQkJHXsM7kJMh_kAbAE5jmW1USdflbEGJqNvU3df2uh0WI-2kNWbY7rVW-VlLBAMj74e3YFbIsEu4uvq3T8oU44oANoep5JQBE/file?dl=1 |url-status=live }}</ref> Since 2016, the global wild population is listed as [[Near Threatened]] on the [[IUCN Red List]] as it is fragmented and affected by loss and destruction of its prime habitat, [[deciduous forest]]s.<ref name=iucn />

==Taxonomy==
''Felis rubiginosa'' was the [[scientific name]] used by [[Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire]] in 1831 for a rusty-spotted cat specimen from [[Puducherry district|Pondicherry]], India.<ref name=Geoffroy1831>{{cite book |last1=Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire |first1=I. |year=1831 |chapter=Le Chat à Taches de Rouille, ''Felis rubiginosa'' (Nob.) |chapter-url=https://www.digitale-sammlungen.de/de/view/bsb10469043?page=182 |pages=140–144 |title=Voyage aux Indes-Orientales par le nord de l'Europe, les provinces du Caucases, la Géorgie, l'Arménie et la Perse, suivi des détails topographiques, statistiques et autre sur le Pégou, les Iles de Jave, de Maurice et de Bourbon, sur le Cap-de-bonne-Espérance et Sainte-Hélène, pendant les années 1825, 1826, 1827, 1828 et 1829. Tome 3: Zoologie |editor1-last=Bélanger |editor1-first=C. |editor2-last=Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire |editor2-first=I. |publisher=Arthus Bertrand |location=Paris}}</ref> ''Prionailurus'' was proposed by [[Nikolai Severtzov]] in 1858 as a [[Generic name (biology)|generic name]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Severtzow |first1=M. N. |year=1858 |title=Notice sur la classification multisériale des Carnivores, spécialement des Félidés, et les études de zoologie générale qui s'y rattachent |journal=Revue et Magasin de Zoologie Pure et Appliquée |volume=X |pages=385–396 |url=https://archive.org/stream/revueetmagasinde10soci#page/386/mode/2up}}</ref> ''Prionailurus rubiginosus phillipsi'' was proposed by [[Reginald Innes Pocock]] in 1939 who described a specimen from [[Central Province, Sri Lanka]] and subordinated both to the genus ''Prionailurus''.<ref name=Pocock39/>

=== Phylogeny ===
[[Phylogenetic]] analysis of the [[nuclear DNA]] in tissue samples from all Felidae species revealed that the [[evolutionary radiation]] of the Felidae began in Asia in the [[Miocene]] around {{mya|14.45|8.38}}.<ref name=Johnson2006>{{cite journal |last1=Johnson |first1=W. E. |last2=Eizirik |first2=E. |last3=Pecon-Slattery |first3=J. |last4=Murphy |first4=W. J. |author5=Antunes, A. |author6=Teeling, E. |author7=O'Brien, S. J. |name-list-style=amp |year=2006 |doi=10.1126/science.1122277 |title=The Late Miocene radiation of modern Felidae: A genetic assessment |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=311 |pages=73–77 |pmid=16400146 |issue=5757 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1230866 |bibcode=2006Sci...311...73J |s2cid=41672825 |access-date=2020-05-04 |archive-date=2020-10-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004075725/https://zenodo.org/record/1230866 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Werdelin2010>{{cite book |last1=Werdelin |first1=L. |last2=Yamaguchi |first2=N. |last3=Johnson |first3=W. E. |last4=O'Brien |first4=S. J. |name-list-style=amp |chapter=Phylogeny and evolution of cats (Felidae) |year=2010 |pages=59–82 |chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266755142 |editor1-last=Macdonald |editor1-first=D. W. |editor2-last=Loveridge |editor2-first=A. J. |title=Biology and Conservation of Wild Felids |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=978-0-19-923445-5 |access-date=2020-05-04 |archive-date=2018-09-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180925141956/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266755142 |url-status=live }}</ref> Analysis of [[mitochondrial DNA]] of all Felidae species indicates a radiation at around {{mya|16.76|6.46}}.<ref name=Li_al2016>{{cite journal |author=Li, G. |author2=Davis, B. W. |author3=Eizirik, E. |name-list-style=amp |author4=Murphy, W. J. |year=2016 |title=Phylogenomic evidence for ancient hybridization in the genomes of living cats (Felidae) |journal=Genome Research |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=1–11 |doi=10.1101/gr.186668.114 |pmid=26518481 |pmc=4691742}}</ref>

The ''Prionailurus'' species are estimated to have had a [[common ancestor]] between {{mya|8.16|4.53}},<ref name=Johnson2006/> and {{mya|8.76|0.73}}.<ref name=Li_al2016/> The rusty-spotted cat possibly [[Genetic divergence|genetically diverged]] from this ancestor between {{mya|6.54|3.42}}.<ref name=Johnson2006/> Both models agree in the rusty-spotted cat having been the first cat of this [[Lineage (genetic)|lineage]] that diverged, followed by the [[flat-headed cat]] (''P. planiceps'') and the [[fishing cat]] (''P. viverrinus'').<ref name=Johnson2006/><ref name=Li_al2016/> The following [[cladogram]] shows the phylogenetic relationships of the rusty-spotted cat as derived through analysis of nuclear DNA:<ref name=Johnson2006/><ref name=Werdelin2010/>

{{cladogram |align=left |style=font-size:90%;line-height:100%;width:500px;
 |cladogram={{clade |label1=[[Felidae]]
 |1={{clade |label1=[[Felinae]]
   |1={{clade
    |1={{clade
       |1={{clade |label1=''Prionailurus''
         |1={{clade
           |1={{clade
            |1={{clade
             |1={{clade
               |1=Leopard cat
               |2=Fishing Cat }}
             |2=Flat-headed cat }}
           |2='''Rusty-spotted cat''' }} }}
       |2=[[Pallas's cat]] (''O. manul'') |label2=''Otocolobus''}} }}
    |2=other Felinae lineages }}
   |2=[[Pantherinae]] }} }} }}
{{clear|left}}

==Characteristics==
[[File:Rustyspottedcatskull.png|thumb|Illustration of a skull<ref name="Pocock39"/>]]
The rusty-spotted cat has a short reddish grey fur over most of the body with rusty spots on the back and flanks. Four blackish lines run over the eyes, and two of them extend over the neck. Six dark streaks are on each side of the head, extending over the cheeks and forehead. Its chin, throat, inner side of the limbs and belly are whitish with tiny brownish spots. It has a rusty band on the chest. Its paws and tail are uniform reddish grey.<ref name=Geoffroy1831/>

It is the smallest wild cat in [[Asia]] and rivals the [[black-footed cat]] as the world's smallest wild cat. It is {{cvt|35|to|48|cm}} in length, with a {{cvt|15|to|30|cm}} tail, and weighs only {{cvt|0.9|to|1.6|kg|lb}}. The bushy tail is about half the length of the body.<ref name=WCoW>{{cite book |author=Sunquist, M. |author2=Sunquist, F. |name-list-style=amp |year=2002 |title=Wild Cats of the World |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |chapter=Rusty-spotted Cat ''Prionailurus rubiginosus'' (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1834) |pages=237–240 |isbn=0-226-77999-8 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/wildcatsofworld00sunq/page/237}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
The distribution of the rusty-spotted cat is relatively restricted. It occurs mainly in [[Moist forest|moist]] and [[dry deciduous forest]]s as well as scrub and [[grassland]], but is likely absent in [[evergreen forest]].<ref name="nowell1996">{{Cite book |title=Wild Cats: status survey and conservation action plan |last1=Nowell |first1=K. |last2=Jackson |first2=P. |publisher=IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland |year=1996 |chapter=Rusty-spotted Cat ''Prionailurus rubiginosus'' |chapter-url=http://www.catsg.org/catsgportal/cat-website/catfolk/rubig01.htm |access-date=2011-03-18 |archive-date=2018-01-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180113093100/http://www.catsg.org/catsgportal/cat-website/catfolk/rubig01.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> It prefers dense vegetation and rocky areas.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kittle |first1=A. |last2=Watson |first2=A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2004 |title=Rusty-spotted cat in Sri Lanka: observations of an arid zone population |journal=Cat News |issue=40 |pages=17–19}}</ref><ref name="patel06">{{Cite journal |last=Patel |first=K. |year=2006 |title=Observations of rusty-spotted cat in eastern Gujarat |journal=Cat News |issue=45 |pages=27–28}}</ref>

In India, it was long thought to be confined to the south, but records have established that it occurs over much of the country.<ref name="nowell1996" /> It was observed in eastern [[Gujarat]]'s [[Gir National Park]], in [[Maharashtra]]'s [[Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve]] and along India's [[Eastern Ghats]].<ref name="patel06" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pathak |first=B. J. |year=1990 |title=Rusty spotted cat ''Felis rubiginosa'' Geoffroy: A new record for Gir Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=87 |page=8}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Dubey |first=Y. |year=1999 |title=Sighting of rusty spotted cat in Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra |journal=Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society |volume=96 |issue=2 |page=310}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Manakadan |first1=R. |last2=Sivakumar |first2=S. |name-list-style=amp |year=2006 |title=Rusty-spotted cat on India's east coast |journal=Cat News |issue=45 |page=26}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Behera |first=S. |year=2008 |title=Rusty-spotted Cat in Nagarjunasagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve |journal=Cat News |issue=48 |page=19}}</ref> [[Camera trap]]ping revealed its presence in [[Pilibhit Tiger Reserve]] in the Indian [[Terai]] and in [[Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary]] in Maharashtra.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Anwar |first1=M. |last2=Kumar |first2=H. |last3=Vattakavan |first3=J. |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=Range extension of rusty-spotted cat to the Indian Terai |journal=Cat News |issue=53 |pages=25–26}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Patel |first1=K. |year=2010 |title=New distribution record data for rusty-spotted cat from Central India |journal=Cat News |issue=53 |pages=26–27}}</ref> 

In western Maharashtra, the rusty-spotted cat is breeding in a human dominated agricultural landscape, where rodent densities are high.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Athreya |first1=V. |year=2010 |title=Rusty-spotted cat more common than we think? |journal=Cat News |issue=53 |pages=27}}</ref> In December 2014 and in April 2015, it was photographed by camera traps in [[Kalesar National Park]], [[Haryana]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ghaskadbi |first1=P. |last2=Habib |first2=B. |last3=Mir |first3=Z. |last4=Ray |first4=R. |last5=Talukdar |first5=G. |last6=Lyngdoh |first6=S. |last7=Pandav |first7=B. |last8=Nigam |first8=P. |last9=Kaur |first9=A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2016 |title=Rusty-spotted Cat in Kalesar National Park and Sanctuary, Haryana, India |journal=Cat News |issue=63 |pages=28–29 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316159185 |access-date=2018-01-12 |archive-date=2021-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125082850/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316159185_Rusty-spotted_cat_in_Kalesar_National_Park_and_Sanctuary_Haryana_India |url-status=live }}</ref> It was also recorded by camera traps in [[Mirzapur]] Forest Division of [[Uttar Pradesh]] in 2018.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sinha |first1=D. |last2=Chaudhary |first2=R. |name-list-style=amp |title=Wildlife Inventory and Proposal for Sloth Bear Conservation Reserve in Marihan-Sukrit-Chunar Landscape of Mirzapur Forest Division, Uttar Pradesh |date=2019 |publisher=Vindhyan Ecology and Natural History Foundation |location=Mirzapur |isbn=978-93-5279-561-1 |page=32 |url=https://vindhyabachao.org/mirzapur-wildlife |access-date=16 August 2019 |archive-date=7 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807002224/https://vindhyabachao.org/mirzapur-wildlife |url-status=live }}</ref>

In March 2012, a rusty-spotted cat was photographed in [[Bardia National Park]] for the first time, and in March 2016 also in [[Shuklaphanta National Park]], both in Nepal.<ref name="appel"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lamichhane |first1=B. R. |last2=Kadariya |first2=R. |last3=Subedi |first3=N. |last4=Dhakal |first4=B. K. |last5=Dhakal |first5=M. |last6=Thapa |first6=K. |last7=Acharya |first7=K.P. |name-list-style=amp |year=2016 |title=Rusty-spotted Cat: 12th cat species discovered in Western Terai of Nepal |journal=Cat News |issue=64 |pages=30–33}}</ref>

In Sri Lanka, there are a few records in montane and lowland [[rainforest]]. There are two distinct populations, one in the [[Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests|dry zone]] and the other in the wet zone.<ref name="Deraniyagala56">{{Cite journal |last=Deraniyagala |first=P. E. P. |date=1956 |title=A new subspecies of rusty spotted cat from Ceylon |journal=Spolia Zeylanica 28 |page=113}}</ref>
In 2016, it was recorded for the first time in [[Horton Plains National Park]] at elevations of {{cvt|2084|-|2162|m}}.<ref name="Nimalrathna et al. 2019">{{cite journal |last1=Nimalrathna |first1=T. |last2=Choo |first2=Y. R. |last3=Kudavidanage |first3=E. |last4=Amarasinghe |first4=T. |last5=Bandara |first5=U. |last6=Wanninayaka |first6=W. |last7=Ravindrakumar |first7=P. |last8=Chua |first8=M.A.H. |last9=Webb |first9=E.L. |name-list-style=amp |year=2019 |title=First photographic record of the Rusty-spotted Cat ''Prionailurus rubiginosus'' (I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1831) (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae) in Horton Plains National Park, Sri Lanka |journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=13506–13510 |doi=10.11609/jott.4094.11.4.13506-13510 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

== Ecology and behaviour ==
[[File:Rusty spotted cat 2, crop.jpg|thumb|Rusty-spotted cat in its natural habitat]]
[[File:Rustyspottedcat, crop.jpg|thumb|Rusty-spotted cat photographed in the [[Anaimalai Hills]]]]
Very little is known about the ecology and behaviour of the rusty-spotted cat in the wild. Captive ones are mostly [[nocturnal animal|nocturnal]] but also briefly active during the day.<ref name=WCoW/> Most wild ones were also recorded after dark. At Horton Plain National Park in Sri Lanka, they were mostly recorded between sunset and sunrise, with limited daytime activity.<ref name="Nimalrathna et al. 2019" /> Several individuals were observed hiding in trees and in caves.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Patel |first1=K. |year=2011 |title=Preliminary survey of small cats in Eastern Gujarat, India |journal=Cat News |issue=54 |pages=8–11}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Anwar |first1=M. |last2=Hasan |first2=D. |last3=Vattakavan |first3=J. |name-list-style=amp |year=2012 |title=Rusty-spotted cat in Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh State, India |journal=Cat News |issue=56 |pages=12–13}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Vasava |first1=A. |last2=Bipin |first2=C. M. |last3=Solanki |first3=R. |last4=Singh |first4=A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2012 |title=Record of rusty-spotted cat from Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh, India |journal=Cat News |issue=57 |pages=22–23}}</ref>

It feeds mainly on [[rodent]]s and [[bird]]s, but also preys on [[lizard]]s, [[frog]]s, and [[insect]]s. It hunts primarily on the ground, making rapid, darting movements to catch its prey. It apparently ventures into trees to escape larger predators. Captive females and males both [[Territory (animal)#Scent marking|scent-mark]] their home range by [[spraying urine]].<ref name=WCoW/>

=== Reproduction ===
[[File:Prionailurus rubiginosus 9-Parc des félins.JPG|thumb|A rusty-spotted cat kitten at the [[Parc des Félins]], France]]
The female's [[oestrus]] lasts five days, and mating is unusually brief. Since the female is likely to be vulnerable during this period, its brevity may be an adaptation to help it avoid larger predators. She prepares a den in a secluded location, and after a [[gestation]] of 65–70 days gives birth to one or two kittens. At birth, the kittens weigh just {{cvt|60|to|77|g|oz}}, and are marked with rows of black spots. They reach sexual maturity at around 68 weeks, by which time they have developed the distinctive adult coat pattern of rusty blotches. Rusty-spotted cats have lived for twelve years in captivity, but their lifespan in the wild is unknown.<ref name=WCoW/>

== Threats ==
Habitat loss and the spread of cultivation are serious problems for wildlife in both India and Sri Lanka. Although there are several records of the rusty-spotted cat in cultivated and settled areas, it is not known to what degree these populations are able to persist in such areas. There have been occasional reports of rusty-spotted cat skins in trade.<ref name="nowell1996" /> In some areas, it is hunted for food or as livestock pest.<ref name=WCoW/>

==Conservation==
[[File:Rostkatze Zoo Berlin.JPG|thumb|Rusty-spotted cat in Berlin Zoo, 2008]]

The Indian population is listed on [[CITES Appendix I]]. The Sri Lankan population is included on [[CITES Appendix II]]. The species is fully protected over most of its range, with hunting and trade banned in India and Sri Lanka.<ref name=iucn />

As of 2010, the captive population of ''P. r. phillipsi'' comprised 56 individuals in eight institutions, of which 11 individuals were kept in the [[Colombo Zoo]] in Sri Lanka and 45 individuals in seven European zoos.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bender |first1=U. |year=2011 |title=International Register and Studbook for the Rusty-Spotted Cat ''Prionailurus rubiginosus phillipsi'' (Pocock, 1939) |location=Frankfurt |publisher=Frankfurt Zoo |url=http://library.sandiegozoo.org/studbooks/carnivores/rustyspottedcat2010.pdf }}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{cite web |url=https://www.catsg.org/living-species-rustyspottedcat |publisher=IUCN Cat Specialist Group |title=Rusty-spotted Cat ''Prionailurus rubiginosus''}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.dnaindia.com/ahmedabad/1821719/report-in-a-first-rusty-spotted-cat-sighted-in-kutch |publisher=DNA India |title=In a first, rusty-spotted cat sighted in Kutch |date=2013}}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/science-environment-42668649/smallest-cat-in-world-footage-of-rare-animal |title=Smallest cat in world: Footage of rare animal |publisher=BBC News |date=2018}}

{{Carnivora|Fe.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q309274}}

[[Category:Felids of Asia]]
[[Category:Felids of India]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1831]]
[[Category:Mammals of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Near threatened biota of Asia]]
[[Category:Prionailurus]]