Small cats

Step into the world of wild cat romance. While many wild cats are solitary creatures, their coupling behaviors reveal intricate and surprising dynamics that are key to their survival.

Around the world, mammals, birds, fish and other species are disappearing before our very eyes. Habitat destruction, climate change, poaching, pollution and human-wildlife conflict are driving as many as three species to extinction every hour. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) manages a staggering list of over 44,000 species threatened with extinction. Five wild cats (one-eighth of all wild feline species) are officially listed as “Endangered”:

This Small Cat Spotlight features the Canada lynx. Read on to learn about the species’ range, ecology, anatomy and Panthera’s work in Canada to help protect it. Join Dr. Wai-Ming Wong, Panthera's Small Cat Conservation Science Director, as he ventures into the snowy forests of North America to unveil the truth about this secretive cat.

It’s time for another Wild Cats 101 lesson! Panthera has written a few blogs on black cats before but this spooky season, we’re bringing you more information on melanism!

Although most attention and conservation funding are dedicated to big cats, there are 33 equally fascinating and striking species of small wild cats. Many are a mere fraction of the size of the largest male tigers, which can weigh over 600 pounds and take down prey as large as wild buffalo and even bears.

For our seventh installment of Small Cat Spotlight, we’re turning our attention to Central Asia, the vast expanse of steppe and mountains home to a famous small cat: Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus manul). More than just a funny, furry face, learn more about this small cat and programs to study them across their range.

At the University of Liège, Sarah Tossens is a graduate student of Dr. Marine Drouilly, a Panthera scientist who specializes in leopards. Learn more about her journey deep into the jungles of the Republic of the Congo to monitor the ecological roles of leopards and golden cats in this densely forested landscape.

Learn more about Dr. Laurel Serieys' travels to Thailand to conduct research on the livelihoods of fishing cats alongside our team. 

Every May and June, a new generation of bobcats is born on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, United States. Bobcats are the most widespread cat in the United States, but surprisingly, less is known about them than cougars, with whom they share their habitats. Through the Olympic Cougar Project, we are not only studying cougars, but bobcats as well. We hope to gain insight into their cryptic lives.