Researchers have in Thailand one that was already believed to be extinct Wildcat rediscovered: The flat-headed cat, which was last seen in the Southeast Asian country in 1995, was found in the Princess Sirindhorn Sanctuary in the south Thailand captured by camera traps, according to the Thai Nature Conservation Authority and the wild cat protection organization Panthera. The investigation started last year resulted in a total of 29 detections of wild cats.
The flat-headed cat is one of the rarest and most endangered wild cats in the world. It is only found in Southeast Asia and is endangered primarily because of the destruction of its habitat. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the flat-headed cat on its Red List of Endangered Species and estimates the total population to be only around 2,500 Animals. The species has long been considered “possibly extinct” in Thailand.
So far, the researchers cannot say exactly how many specimens were captured by the cameras. Since the individual animals are very similar, it is difficult to assign them. According to their own information, the researchers assume a relatively large population. Among other things, a female with a young animal was photographed.
Flat-headed cat lives in tropical rainforest
The habitat of the flat-headed cat is the tropical rainforest. The nocturnal animals, which are slightly smaller than a house cat, prefer to stay in wet areas such as swamps and mangrove forests.
Thailand’s swamp forests, an important habitat for the flat-headed cat, are increasingly being displaced by agriculture, said wild cat expert Kaset Sutasha of Kasetsart University in Bangkok. Their highly fragmented distribution area makes it difficult, among other things, for the animals to reproduce. The animals are also threatened by diseases transmitted by pets. The rediscovery would therefore have to be followed by protective measures in order to enable the flat-headed cat to live a life “without danger”.
