Jungle Cat

Sizes Height: 14-16 inches Length: 28-48 inches Weight: 9-28 pounds Breeding Sexual Maturity: 11 months Mating Season: February/March in Central Asia; October in India Gestation: 63-68 days Litter size: 1-6 kittens

Lifestyle Habit: family groups of males, females and cubs Diet: rodents, hares, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, young chital, wild pigs, and fish Call: a very loud "bark" such as from a large breed of dog Lifespan: 14 years in captivity

The Jungle Cat has fur colored sandy-brown, reddish or gray, and is unpatterned except for some brown striping on the legs. Like the kittens of lions, which are born with spotting, these kittens are born with stripes for safe concealment, which disappear as they grow older. Melanistic, or all black, Jungle Cats have also been seen in the wild. Contrary to its name, the Jungle Cat is found in a variety of habitats but typically is not one to live in "jungles". The Jungle Cat is found in Egypt through Southwestern Asia and over to India. In Egypt they prefer swampy ground and reed beds, and in India they prefer woodlands, open plains, grasslands, agricultural crops and scrub.

Unlike most wild cats, Jungle Cats live in family groups with females, males and cubs. Males have even been seen to be more protective of cubs than females. The greatest threat facing this cat is the destruction of the natural wetlands in whic the Jungle Cat resides. Like the African wildcats and domestic cats, the Jungle Cat has been mummified and placed in tombs in Ancient Egypt.

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