Rare Asian golden cat spotted in North Bengal

According to the experts, this cat, also known at the Temminck’s cat, has been spotted for the first time in the region.

Hyderabad: The forest authorities of the Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR) have been able to spot the rare Asian Golden Cat in North Bengal. Several cameras, set up in the forests to keep an eye on the tigers, actually helped in spotting this cat.

According to the experts, this cat, also known at the Temminck’s cat, has been spotted for the first time in the region. It is one among the several creatures listed in the International Union for Nature Conservation’s (ICUN) special list of endangered animals.

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The cat has been listed as near threatened and subject to highest levels of protection under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. The several camera traps installed by the authorities to track the tigers captured this cat, leading to the first-ever photographic proof of the species.

The cat is originally a medium-sized wild cat found in the forests along the borders of China and India. However, today less than a dozen of them are left in the wild. The large scale killing of females by the males is considered to be the major reason for their decline. Hence this spotting in West Bengal could be a major sign of their increasing population and further help to expand specific conservation schemes.

— Simar Kaur