Flat-headed cat

Flat-headed cat
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Felinae
Genus: Prionailurus
Species:
P. planiceps[1]
Binomial name
Prionailurus planiceps[1]
(Vigors & Horsfield, 1827)
Map showing Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo
Distribution of the flat-headed cat, 2015[2]

The flat-headed cat (Prionailurus planiceps) is a small wild cat with short reddish-brown fur. Its head is elongated, and its ears are rounded. Its slender body is 41 to 50 cm (16 to 20 in) long with a tail of 13 to 15 cm (5.1 to 5.9 in), and it weighs 1.5 to 2.5 kg (3.3 to 5.5 lb).

The flat-headed cat was first described in 1827 based on a zoological specimen collected in Sumatra. It is also native to the Thai-Malay Peninsula and Borneo, and inhabits wetlands like mixed freshwater swamp forests and lowland freshwater swamps near rivers and coastal areas. It preys foremost on fish, frogs and crustaceans.

The flat-headed cat is threatened by habitat destruction due to conversion for settlements, agriculture and oil palm plantations. It has been listed on the IUCN Red List as Endangered since 2008.

  1. ^ Wozencraft, W. C. (2005). "Species Prionailurus planiceps". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 543. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ^ a b c Wilting, A.; Brodie, J.; Cheyne, S.; Hearn, A.; Lynam, A.; Mathai, J.; McCarthy, J.; Meijaard, E.; Mohamed, A.; Ross, J.; Sunarto, S. & Traeholt, C. (2015). "Prionailurus planiceps". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2015: e.T18148A50662095. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T18148A50662095.en. Retrieved 16 January 2022.