Small wild cat population declining because of humans, says report

A recent report on the status of small wild cats in the Tiger landscape of India released by the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change MOEFampCC states that small cats despite their ecological importance remain understudied and underrepresented in conservation planningThe small cat species in India represent nearly onefourth of all felid species worldwide There are a total of ten small wild cat species found in India of which three species mdash the jungle cat the rustyspotted cat and the leopard cat mdash are the most commonThe jungle cat has emerged as the most widespread species occupying an estimated 96275 sq km area followed by the rustyspotted cat occupying 70075 sq km with high occupancy in mixed deciduous forestsThe report highlights the alarming fact that the jungle cat and rustyspotted cat which also occur outside protected areas face threats from humanwildlife conflictsThe report reads ldquoOccupancy generally declined with increasing human disturbance except in habitat generalists such as the jungle cat and rustyspotted cat While occupancy patterns appeared relatively stable between 2018 and 2022 the absence of finescale data on prey availability and microhabitat features may mask subtle changes These findings offer a baseline for targeted research and conservation efforts for Indiarsquos lesserknown felidsrdquoJungle cat distributionThe report states that although the jungle cat is widely distributed across a variety of habitats mdash from semiarid regions to dense rainforests mdash its occupancy shows marked variation across landscapesldquoThe highest occupancy probabilities were recorded in the dry deciduous forests of central India particularly in Madhya Pradesh eastern Maharashtra and the semiarid protected areas of Rajasthan In northeast India areas such as Kaziranga Nameri and the lower elevations of Pakke Tiger Reserve supported relatively low occupancy The Terai region also exhibited low occupancy across its protected areas while the Western Ghats generally showed low occupancy Smaller forest patches in Telangana and Karnataka exhibited a mix of moderate to high occupancy In contrast the Sundarbans mangrove ecosystem showed predominantly low occupancyrdquo states the reportDistribution of leopard catAccording to the report leopard cats demonstrate a preference for dense moist and relatively undisturbed habitats Within the Terai Arc landscape the species show variable patterns of occupancy Moderate to high occupancy is observed in the eastern Rajaji region Corbett the western and central Terai divisions and the northern parts of Valmiki while the remaining areas of the landscape exhibit low occupancyldquoIn northeast India occupancy is generally moderate to high likely influenced by the prevalence of tropical moist deciduous and evergreen forests as well as consistently high rainfall In contrast the central Indian landscape shows a limited presence of leopard cats Detections are primarily confined to Similipal and Satkosia in Odisha with moderate to high and low occupancy respectively In the Western Ghats the Nilgiri and Periyar clusters have moderate to high occupancy levels Other regions within this landscape show comparatively lower occupancyrdquo the report further statedKaterniaghat and SuhelwaldquoNotable increases in occupancy were detected in Dudhwa as well as in select areas of Rajaji and Suhelwa Conversely certain grid cells particularly those located near forest edges showed a decline in occupancy In northeast India occupancy patterns remained largely stable Similarly in central India the Satkosia and Similipal landscapes exhibited consistent occupancy Within the Western Ghats overall occupancy was stable though interspersed with some gridcells reflecting both increases and decreasesrdquo stated the reportRustyspotted catThe report states that the results align with the known affinity of rustyspotted cats for forested environments It thrives in deciduous forests favouring less rugged drier landscapes The positive association of the speciesrsquo occupancy with protected areas underscores the critical role of Indiarsquos tiger reserves in securing viable populations of the worldrsquos smallest wild catHighest occupancy probabilities were estimated in several landscapes including NagarjunasagarndashSrisailamAmrabad Tiger Reserves complex BandipurMudumalaiSathyamangalam Tiger Reserves complex Bhadravathi and Ballari forest divisions Sariska and Ranthambore Tiger Reserves Kuno National Park Kumbhalgarh Eturnagaram Gundla Brahmeswaram and Dnyanganga Wildlife SanctuariesOccupancy was observed in Pench Bor Kawal Panna and Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserves as well as in Kheoni and Shergarh Wildlife Sanctuaries and parts of the Western Ghats In contrast low occupancy was characteristic of moist forest ecosystems found in UdantiSitanadi Satkosia Ratapani Satpura and Kanha Tiger Reserves the Terai landscape and much of the Western Ghats10No of small cat species found in India