Sand Cat Endangered Facts
Vulnerable arid ecosystems are being rapidly degraded by human settlement and activity especially livestock grazing Allan and Warren 1993 Al-Sharhan et al.
Sand cat endangered facts. Populations of sand cats in different locations will breed at different times of year. Sand Cats are the most difficult to study cat breeds in the wild. Feral cats and dogs competing for prey.
Desert ecosystems are being degraded by people. Roads cutting through habitat. The species went extinct in Israel due to habitat destruction following the territorial exchange between Israel and Jordan in 1994 but a litter of four sand cat kittens was recently born at the Zoological Center of Tel Aviv.
How are sand cats being protected. Sand cat is small animal that can reach 16 to 18 inches in length and 4 to 8 pounds in weight. The major threat to the Sand Cat being endangered is habitat degeneration.
Sand cats leave almost no footprint as they walk across the sand. Sand cats are threatened by habitat loss hunting and collection for the pet trade. Sand cat is listed as nearly threatened which means that it may become endangered in the near future.
Reproduction of the Sand Cat. This endangered breed is found in the Sahara desert of North Africa Middle Eastern countries and even in Central Asia. Humans feral domestic dogs lions jackals wild dogs venomous snakes and birds of prey hunt the sand cat.
After mating the female sand cat has a gestation period of 59 67 days. Some are killed by humans who consider them a threat to their livestock. Traps and snares intended for other animals such as the fox.