Cats

Common Name: Caracal
Binomial Name: Caracal caracal
Identification: Robustly built cat. Hindquarters slightly higher than the shoulders. General reddish-brown colouration. Short tail. Pointed ears with a tuft of black hair at the tip.
Weight: Males +/- 15 kg (33 lbs), females +/- 15 kg (33 lbs)
Gestation: 3 months
Young: Litters of 1-3
Habitat: Semi-desert to savanna woodland, hilly country to coastal forests.
Diet: Hunts mainly small to medium-sized mammals, ranging from mice to smaller antelope. They will also catch birds and reptiles.
Red List Status: Least Concern

Common Name: African Wild Cat
Binomial Name: Felis lybica
Identification: Similar in appearance and size to a domestic cat, but distinguishable from it by the rich reddish-brown colour of the back of the ears, over the belly and on the back of the hindlegs. Long legs.
Weight: Males +/- 5 kg (11 lbs), females +/- 5 kg (11 lbs)
Gestation: 2 months
Young: Litters of 2-5
Habitat: Wide habitat tolerance, but requires cover.
Diet: Mainly small rodents, but will also eat other small mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and insects.
Red List Status: Least Concern
Notes: African Wild Cats were first domesticated about 10,000 years ago, and all modern cats are descended from this species.

Common Name: Black-footed Cat
Binomial Name: Felis nigripes
Identification: Smaller than a domestic cat, but similar in appearance. Pale body colour well covered with dark-brown to black spots. White chin and throat.
Weight: Males +/- 2 kg (5 lbs), females +/- 2 kg (5 lbs)
Gestation: 2 months
Young: Litters of 1-3
Habitat: Open, dry habitats with some vegetation cover.
Diet: Mainly small rodents, but will also eat birds, reptiles, amphibians and insects.
Red List Status: Vulnerable

Common Name: Southeast African Cheetah
Binomial Name: Acinonyx jubatus jubatus
Identification: Large size. Slender, greyhound-like build. Long, white-tipped tail. Spotted coat. Rounded face with a black “tear-mark”.
Weight: Males +/- 50 kg (110 lbs), females +/- 50 kg (110 lbs)
Gestation: 3 months
Young: Litters of 1-5 (usually 3)
Habitat: Open savanna and light woodland, but also hilly country on occasion. The availability of drinking water is not essential.
Diet: Medium-sized mammals, although if they are hunting in groups, then bigger prey may be taken. Antelope are the principle prey items. Will also catch birds, even up to the size of an Ostrich.
Red List Status: Vulnerable
Notes: Cheetahs used to be tamed and used for hunting, particularly in Asia. Akbar the Great was said to have kept a “stable” of 1,000 Cheetah.

Common Name: Serval
Binomial Name: Leptailurus serval
Identification: Small to medium size. Pale, usually yellowish-fawn coat, black-spotted and black-barred. Large, rounded ears. Short, black-banded and black-tipped tail. Much smaller than both leopards and cheetahs.
Weight: Males +/- 12 kg (26 lbs), females +/- 10 kg (22 lbs)
Gestation: 2-3 months
Young: Litters of 1-3, but sometimes up to 5.
Habitat: Usually environments with water, adjacent tall grassland, reed-beds or rank vegetation fringing forest.
Diet: Small mammals (particularly vlei rats, but up to hares and cane rats), birds, reptiles and insects. Also, the young of the smaller antelope species.
Red List Status: Near Threatened