For the first time in 30 years, one of the rarest wild cat species has been found in Thailand.

 

Rare wildcat 

For the first time in 30 years, one of the rarest wild cat species has been found in Thailand.

Environmental authorities and a non-governmental organization announced the rediscovery of a rare wild cat, long thought to be extinct in Thailand, three decades after its last documented sighting, according to Science Alert , citing Agence France-Presse.
The flat-headed cat is one of the rarest and most endangered wild cat species in the world. Its range is limited to Southeast Asia, and it is threatened with extinction due to habitat loss.

Surveillance cameras in a nature reserve

The cat, which is about the size of a domestic cat and has close-set, round eyes, was last seen in Thailand in 1995. But an environmental survey that began last year, using surveillance cameras in the Princess Sirindhorn Wildlife Sanctuary in southern Thailand, has recorded 29 sightings, according to the country’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Protection and the Panthera Wild Cat Conservation Organisation."

"The rediscovery of this species is both exciting and worrying," veterinarian and researcher Kaset Sotasha of Kasetsart University told AFP, noting that habitat fragmentation had made the species more isolated. The number of cats spotted was not immediately clear, as the species lacks distinctive markings that make counting them difficult.

As Panthera's conservation program manager, Rataphan Patanarangsan, stated, the results indicate a relatively high density of this species.
The images included a female flat-headed cat with her kitten, a rare and encouraging sign for a species that typically only gives birth to one kitten at a time.

cunning night cat

Rataphan added that the flat-headed cat, a nocturnal and elusive cat, typically lives in dense, humid ecosystems such as peat bogs and freshwater mangroves, environments that are extremely difficult for researchers to access.
Globally, the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that around 2,500 adult flat-headed cats still live in the wild, classifying them as an endangered species.
In Thailand, this species has long been listed as "probable to extinction." Casset, who was not involved in the environmental survey but has been researching wild cats for years, says that Thailand's peat bog forests have been severely fragmented, mostly due to land conversion and agricultural expansion.

Increasing threats

These animals also face increasing threats from diseases transmitted by pets and struggle to reproduce in isolated areas. He adds that the rediscovery of this species offers hope, but it is only a "starting point" for future conservation efforts.