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Wildcats

Wildcat
Felis silvestris silvestris Luc Viatour.jpg
European wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Felinae
Genus: Felis
Species: F. silvestris
Binomial name
Felis silvestris
Schreber, 1777
Subspecies

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Wiki-Felis sylvestris.png
Distribution of five Felis silvestris subspecies
Wild Cat Felis silvestris distribution map.png
Wildcat range

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The wildcat (Felis silvestris) is a small cat native to most of Africa, Europe, and Southwest and Central Asia into India, western China, and Mongolia. Because of its wide range it is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 2002. However, crossbreeding of wildcat and domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) occurs in particular in Europe and is considered a potential threat for the preservation of the wild species.

The wildcat shows a high degree of geographic variation. Whereas the Asiatic wildcat is spotted, the African wildcat is faintly striped, has short sandy-grey fur, banded legs, red-backed ears and a tapering tail. The European wildcat is striped, has long fur and a bushy tail with a rounded tip, and is larger than a domestic cat.

The wildcat is the ancestor of the domestic cat. Genetic, morphological and archaeological evidence suggests that domestication of Old-World wildcats began approximately 7500 years BCE in the Fertile Crescent region of the Near East. The association of wildcats with humans appears to have developed along with the growth of agricultural villages during the Neolithic Revolution, with wildcats preying on rodents that infested the grain stores of early farmers.


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Wikipedia

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