Prionailurus javanensis
| Prionailurus javanensis | |
|---|---|
.JPG) |
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| Illustration of Javan leopard cat from Richard Lydekker's "A hand-book to the Carnivora", 1896 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Synapsida |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Suborder: | Feliformia |
| Family: | Felidae |
| Genus: | Prionailurus |
| Species: | P. javanensis |
| Binomial name | |
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Prionailurus javanensis (Desmarest, 1816) |
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Prionailurus javanensis is a small wild cat native to the Sundaland islands of Java, Bali, Borneo, Sumatra and the Philippines that is considered a species distinct from the leopard cat occurring in mainland South and Southeast Asia.
Desmarest described the Javan leopard cat as a little smaller than the domestic cat with brown round spots on grey-brown colored fur above and whitish underneath, a line from above each eye towards the back and longish spots on the back. He noted the similarity to the leopard cat from India. Like all Prionailurus species it has rounded ears. Like its mainland relative, the Sunda leopard cat is slender, with long legs and well-defined webs between its toes. Its small head is marked with two prominent dark stripes and a short and narrow white muzzle. There are two dark stripes running from the eyes to the ears, and smaller white streaks running from the eyes to the nose. The backs of its moderately long and rounded ears are black with central white spots. Body and limbs are marked with black spots of varying size and color, and along its back are three rows of elongated spots that join into complete stripes in some subspecies. The tail is about half the size of its head-body length and is spotted with a few indistinct rings near the black tip. The background color of the spotted fur varies from light gray to ochre tawny, with a white chest and belly. There are two main variants in the coloration. The cats from Java, Bali, and Palawan are a light gray, sometimes yellow-grey, with very small spots that may not be clearly defined. The three spotted lines along the back do not form complete stripes and are close together. Those from Sumatra, Borneo, and Negros have a warm ochre toned background color and larger well-distinguished spots. The three longitudinal spot-lines are usually fused into stripes. Sunda leopard cats weigh 0.55 to 3.8 kg (1.2 to 8.4 lb), have head-body lengths of 38.8 to 66 cm (15.3 to 26.0 in) and tails about 40-50% of that length.
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Wikipedia