Il Gatto Selvatico (Felis silvestris)

Abitudini - Wild cats, and their domestic counterparts, are usually active at night or at dusk and dawn, although they are also active during the day, particularly in areas with little human disturbance. Asiatic wild cats in particular are often active during the day. Wild cats often travel widely at night in search prey. One European wild cat was recorded traveling 10km in a night. Wild cats are primarily solitary animals, their domestic counterparts are more social and can occur in small family groups. Domestic cats are also usually solitary, but may form small colonies in areas where food sources are clustered, such as garbage dumps. In unrestrained domestic cat populations, female cats typically stay in their area of birth while males leave their area of birth and attempt to establish a home range elsewhere. In areas with concentrations of free-ranging domestic cats a sort of hierarchy is formed. Newcomers must go through a series of fights with resident animals before their position in the hierarchy is established. Wild cat males mark territories by spraying strong urine on objects throughout their home ranges. Females also communicate when they are ready to breed with scents that they emit which are highly attractive to males. Cats have scent glands on their foreheads, around their mouths, and near the bases of their tails. A cat rubs these glands against objects to mark them with its scent. Wild cats communicate with visual cues, such as raising the hair on their backs, moving their tails, and facial expressions. They also have a variety of sounds that communicate different intents, including aggressive hisses and yowls, affectionate purring, and a 'be quiet' squeak used to silence kittens. Wild cats have a well developed sense of smell and hearing. The ears of a cat can rotate rapidly to identify the source of a particular sound and are able to respond to frequencies up to 25,000 vibrations per second. Because of this ability, cats can hear even ultrasonic noises made by small rodents. This sometimes allows them to locate and capture prey without seeing it. Their sight is good but probably not better than that of humans. The range of colors seen by cats is smaller than the human range. The eyes of cats are located on the front of the head. Although this allows them to have excellent depth perception, a useful tool in hunting, cats cannot see directly under their noses. They also have the ability to see even tiny movements, helping them to locate prey. Their eyes are adapted for vision in dim light for hunting just after dusk or before dawn. Another notable mode of sensation in cats are whiskers, or vibrissae. Whiskers are special hairs that are used as highly sensitive touch organs. A cat uses its whiskers to determine if their bodies can fit through small openings such as small pipes, and other various objects. They also use them to detect the movement of prey.

Alimentazione - As with most small cat species, the diet of wild cats, or domestic cats, is mainly made up of small rodents, such as mice and rats. Rabbits may be preferred prey in some areas and seem to be the dominant prey for European wild cats (F. s. silvestris). Other prey items include birds, young ungulates, reptiles, amphibians, eggs, and large insects and arachnids. European wild cats (F. s. silvestris) have been recorded scavenging carrion, but this is reported to be rare in African and Asiatic wild cats (F. s. libyca and F. s. notatus). Food caching has been reported in European wild cats (F. s. silvestris). Rodents preyed on by Asiatic wild cats (F. s. notatus) include jerboas, gerbils, voles, and mice. Occasionally, cats eat grass in order to clear their stomach of indigestible food, like bones, fur, and feathers. Wild cats are able to subdue prey almost as large as themselves and tend to avoid prey that is spiny, has shells, or has an offensive odor. Female wild cats may teach their young how to capture prey by bringing them injured animals on which to practice.

Riproduzione - When a female wild cat goes into estrous, local males congregate near the female and compete for access to her. Males screech, yowl, display, and fight. Females will mate with multiple males and multiple paternity in single litters is possible. Breeding in wild cats occurs at different times of the year, depending on local climate. In European wild cats (F. s. silvestris) breeding occurs in late winter (January to March) and births occur in the spring, usually in May. Breeding has been recorded nearly year round in Asiatic wild cats (F. s. notatus) and, in African wild cats (F. s. libyca) breeding has been recorded from September through March. Females are pregnant for 56 to 68 days and give birth to 1 to 8 young, with an average of 3.4, in a protected burrow, often a space under rocks or in dense vegetation. Females become sexually mature at about 10 to 11 months old, and males from 9 to 22 months old. Domestic cats may breed much more frequently, as often as 3 times a year, as they are not typically limited by nutrition or climate. Average litter size in domestic cats is 4 to 6. The gestation period averages 65 days. Domestic kittens are weaned at about 8 weeks old and become independent at about 6 months old. Females become sexually mature as early as 6 months old. The young are born with eyes closed and are unable to walk. They are nursed and cared for in the den by their mother for 4 to 12 weeks. Their eyes open at 10 days old and they nurse for about 30 days. They remain with their mother, learning hunting and survival skills for from 4 to 10 months, usually around 5 months. After that they are driven from their mother's range and must become independent. Males do not help to care for kittens.

Habitat e Area di Distribuzione - Wild cats are found throughout continental Europe, southwestern Asia, and the savannah regions of Africa. Felis silvestris is currently regarded as being made up of three, distinct groups (or subspecies): F. silvestris lybica, African wild cats, F. silvestris silvestris, European wild cats, and F. silvestris ornata, Asiatic wild cats. African wild cats are found in appropriate habitat throughout Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. European wild cats are found throughout Europe and western Russia, except for much of the British Isles (they are found in Scotland) and Scandinavian countries. Asiatic wildcats are found in the Middle East, southern Russia, western China, and western India. Some authorities recognize F. s. silvestris as a species distinct from both F. s. lybica and F. s. ornata. Domestic cats are thought to be descended from African wild cats and are found virtually worldwide in association humans. African wild cats occur throughout Africa in a wide variety of habitats. They are absent only from tropical rainforest. In desert regions they are restricted to mountainous areas and waterways. They occur up to >3000 m in montane areas. Asiatic wild cats are found primarily in scrub desert, but can be found in a wide variety of habitats. They are absent from alpine and steppe grasslands and the northern limit of their distribution may be determined by snow depth. They can be found up to 3000 m in mountains and are usually found in areas near water sources. European wild cats are found primarily in deciduous forests. They are also known from coniferous forests, but these may be marginal habitats. They are restricted in their northern distribution by snow depth and are typically found in areas of low human populations. European wild cats cannot persist in areas where snow depth in the winter is more than 20 cm deep for more than 100 days. They are known from human dominated landscapes where grazing is the dominant form of agriculture and, therefore, land use is not intensive. They are also known from scrublands, riparian habitats, and coastal areas. Domestic cats occur in many habitat types because of their association with humans. They do best in areas where winters are not severely cold.

Status della Specie - European wildcats are critically endangered in their native range. They were largely exterminated from western and central Europe during the 19th and 20th centuries because they were considered a danger to game and domestic animals. They continue to be threatened by habitat loss, but populations are making a recovery in many parts of their former range. Other threats to European wildcats include population isolation, deaths from being hit by automobiles, and vulnerability to diseases transmitted by domestic cats. They are currently protected throughout Europe and several re-introduction efforts are underway. The main threat to all wild cat populations, especially those of European wildcats, is continuing hybridization (inter-breeding) with domestic forms. Hybridization results in decreased genetic purity of the wild forms. Some researchers suggest that genetically pure European wild cats are extinct as a result of extensive hybridization. Domestic cats are not threatened. Instead population control mechanisms are needed in most areas.