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Duckworth, J.W.; Lynam, A.J.; Breitenmoser-Wrsten, C.
Non-_Panthera_ cats in South-east Asia: present knowledge and recommendations
2014  Cat News (Special Issue 8): 62-67

The conservation status of South-east Asia's nine species of non-_Panthera _cat is imprecisely known. Flat-headed cat _Prionailurus planiceps_, bay cat _Catopuma badia _and Sunda clouded leopard _Neofelis diardi _are confined to South-east Asia, while Asiatic golden cat _Catopuma temminckii_, marbled cat _Pardofelis marmorata _and mainland clouded leopard _Neofelis nebulosa _occur mostly there. The recent great increase in camera-trapping is generating many verifiable records of non-_Panthera _cats, usually as by-catch to the surveys' foci. Inspection of such records from Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam (whole country reviews) and Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia and Sumatra (Indonesia; single-landscape reviews) show that the evergreen forest species - the two allopatric _Catopuma _species, the two parapatric clouded leopard species, leopard cat _Prionailurus bengalensis _and marbled cat _Pardofelis marmorata _- are all recorded widely. In well-protected areas of suitable habitat they are found mostly commonly; but densities are much reduced, even in large littlefragmented and little-degraded landscapes, where snaring is heavy (Vietnam and Nakai-Nam Theun, Lao PDR). Leopard cat is considerably more resilient than are the others. By contrast, only Cambodian dry forest was found to hold many jungle cats _Felis chaus _(apparently suitable habitat in Myanmar is poorly surveyed); fishing cat _Prionailurus viverrinus _records are exceptional outside surveys specifically for them, and the species seems to have a small, fragmented and vulnerable range in South-east Asia; flat-headed cat has been found widely, but rarely, within its (also fragmented) range. These last three, particularly fishing cat, are served poorly by South-east Asian protected areas. The global priority species for South-east Asia are arguably flat-headed cat because it occurs nowhere else, and fishing cat because no large populations are known from anywhere. By contrast, jungle cat is still apparently numerous outside South-east Asia. With no major near-term increase in conservation attention likely for these nine cat species, regular reviews, duly attending to misidentification risk, of their camera-trap by-catch records could help track, coarsely, seven species' status. Fishing cat, however, requires directed monitoring because of both its apparent perilous status and its non-overlap with typical cameratrap areas; flat-headed cat would also benefit strongly from this.

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