International Palla`s cat Day – 23rd April
International Palla`s cat Day – 23rd April
Every cat deserves a day of it’s own and April 23 it’s International Pallas Cat Day.The pallas’s cat are one of the least studied cats.
Pallas’s cat, also called Steppe Cat, or Manul, (Felis manul), small, long-haired cat (family Felidae) native to deserts and rocky, mountainous regions from Tibet to Siberia. It was named for the naturalist Peter Simon Pallas. The Pallas’s cat is a soft-furred animal about the size of a house cat and is pale silvery gray or light brown in colour. The end of its tail is ringed and tipped with black, and some individuals have vague, dark markings on the body. The fur of the underparts is about twice as long as that of the upperparts and possibly represents an adaptation to the cat’s habitual lying and crouching on cold ground.Pallas’s cat is similar in size to a domestic cat but it looks much bigger because of its stocky build and its long, thick coat, which helps protect it in its frosty habitat. Its shaggy coat is especially thick on its belly to protect it from the snow while stalking prey. The fur changes color depending on the season, in winter being a frosted gray and in spring a gray/fox-red. The pupils of its large eyes, unlike those of other small cats, contract to small circles instead of slits.Head and body length ranges from 45 to 60 cms with an additional 23–30 cm for the tail; weight ranges from 2.5 to 3.5 kilograms. The Pallas’s cat is distinguished by a broad head with high-set eyes and low-set ears.
Pallas’s cats occur in the west from the Caspian Sea through Pakistan, Kazakhstan, and northern India to China and Mongolia. They inhabit arid, montane shrublands and grasslands, rocky outcrops, scree slopes, and ravines in areas, where the continuous snow cover is below 15-20 cm. In the central part of their range, they live in hilly landscapes, high plateaus, and intermontane valleys that are covered by dry steppe or semi-desert vegetation, such as low shrubs and xerophytic grasses.
Pallas’ cats are carnivores and eat mainly small rodents, including gerbils, voles, hamsters, pikas and small marmots. They will also eat small lizards and birds. They ambush their prey rather than chasing it, often waiting at the exits of rodent burrows or even sticking their paws in to try to scoop out their prey.
– Source: Internet –