Cambodia News (Phnom Penh): On June 27, 2021, according to Mr. Net Pheaktra, secretary and representative of the Ministry of Environment, footages gathered from the digital cameras set up in Vireak Chey Wildlife Sanctuary in Rattanakiri province have recorded a rare and endangered Asiatic golden cat (Catopuma Temminckii)*, which is ranked as the near-extinct in the red list of IUCN.



The cat weighs around 9 to 16 kilograms and these cats' primary food source are squirrels, mice, birds, amphibians, mouse deers, and monkeys.
There are not many studies on the Asiatic Golden Cat, and very few written records about this species from previous rare sightings in the Virachey National Park wildlife sanctuary.



* The Asiatic golden cat is also known as Temminck's cat and the Asian golden cat.

Funny, I was talking about Golden cats today with an old Koh Kong best mate who has just turned up in my neighbourhood. She used to run dirt bike tours thru the Cardamoms and saw one of these magnificent cats cross her path one time.
(a bit bigger than your average Moggie. slow striding power and muscular arrogance, like a golden lioness queen)
There are more wild cats around than we ever see, that's for sure - along with the undeniable fact of their population decline.

reminder - We have
Golden cat
Jungle cat
Fishing cat
Marbled cat
Leopard cat
Clouded leopard
Leopard
Tiger - now gone, probably since approx only 2008

This is an excellent piece on the status of some of the regions cats
https://news.mongabay.com/2014/10/savin ... ts-photos/

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Thank you for posting that article Stern, which led to another few articles for me, none were really central to this theme though.

I liked this Marbled Cat picture from the Mongabay article here linked again; https://news.mongabay.com/2014/10/savin ... ts-photos/, that I posted it.

I wonder about cash incentives to locals and potential poachers from legit conservation org's to provide information with photo documentation or something to aide the efforts to locate and protect these stunningly beautiful animals. It seems like Western sponsors with means might enjoy donating for the "hunting" of such animals. Just an idea, I was considering Diane Fossey and her mistakes in attacking the poaching community and how that ended up as opposed to incentivizing the poachers for aiding in the preservation efforts.

late edit, I'm new to this and got myopic and spaced out the deforestation piece of this picture thus the "save the pretty kitties" tripe above. It is more engaging, at least for me, to focus on the animals that are on critically endangered lists than it is to get into the hot mess of deforestation.

World's Endangered Clouded Leopard Found in Cambodia
AKP Phnom Penh, June 30, 2021 --


Clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa)
Endangered clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) listed in the IUCN red list of threatened species have been spotted in Cambodia's forests.

The good news was shared recently by the Ministry of Environment, adding that they were found in the forests in the northeast, southwest and north of Cambodia.

Clouded leopard are also found living in Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia (Sumatra), Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam.

The leopard has become extinct in Bangladesh, Singapore and Taiwan although it can give birth to two to four cubs at a time after about 90 to 95 days of conception.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has included this type of tiger species in its red list of endangered animals.

Reportedly, the extinction of clouded leopard was resulted by poaching and loss of their habitat due to both natural and man-made factors.

The Ministry of Environment has recently announced the spotting of some other endangered animals in Cambodian wildlife sanctuaries such as the Asiatic golden cat (Catopuma Temminckii), Asiatic wild dog (Cuon alpinus), and large-antlered muntjac or giant muntjac (Muntiacus vuquangensis).
https://www.akp.gov.kh/post/detail/234739

Sad news.
July 24, 2021
Clouded leopard rescued from snare dies
Sen David / Khmer Times

Veterinarians perform surgery on a clouded leopard at Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre. Wildlife Alliance
A clouded leopard which was snared in Kampot province has died due to its injuries. Last week, the clouded leopard was removed from a snare in Teuk Chhou district and later taken in by local police.

According to Wildlife Alliance today, it is uncertain how long the animal was trapped in the snare. Following this, captors tied the clouded leopard’s legs, head and jaws for two days, before local police heard about the cat and intervened. By this time, the clouded leopard had likely not been able to eat or drink for a week or more. On 16 July, Wildlife Alliance heard about the clouded leopard and went to help the animal.

Nick Marx, director of Wildlife Alliance’s Wildlife Rescue and Care, described the poor condition of the cat, a young male. “The clouded leopard was very weak and very frightened,” he said. The animal was weak, wounded and dehydrated due to being without food and water for so long.

The clouded leopard was transported to Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre where he received professional veterinarian care. While the treatment was successful, sadly, the clouded leopard died two days later.

“Snared animals require immediate treatment,” said Marx. While every effort was made to save the clouded leopard, his weakened state meant this was not possible.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50900525/c ... nare-dies/

Wild animals are not pets. From Wildlife Alliance FB page:

Leopard Cat Kittens Rescued in Kratie






This #InternationalCatDay we celebrate wild cats big and small.
Last month, the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team received reports of TikTok video of 2 baby leopard cats found in a ricefield in Kratie province. The team contacted the TikTok account owner who agreed to donate the kittens, but informed us that one of them had died. Our team confiscated the other kitten, who is now at Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre. This is one more example of how rescued wild animals require immediate assistance from experts.
Fortunately, the remaining kitten is doing well at Phnom Tamao.
ifaw គោព្រៃ - Kouprey Express Ministry of Environment រដ្ឋបាលព្រៃឈើ Forestry Administration, Cambodia សាយ សំអាល់ - Say Samal Neth Pheaktra
#InternationalCatDay #BeCatCurious #leopardcat #cat #wildcat #protect #wildlife #environment #wildlifecrime #biodiversity #habitat #protection #IAMNOTFOOD #iamnotapet #endangered #endangeredspecies #stopeatingwildlife #wildlifealliance

See also: Who to contact if you see endangered animals being kept as pets
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CEOCambodiaNews wrote: ↑Mon Jun 28, 2021 11:54 pm
Cambodia News (Phnom Penh): On June 27, 2021, according to Mr. Net Pheaktra, secretary and representative of the Ministry of Environment, footages gathered from the digital cameras set up in Vireak Chey Wildlife Sanctuary in Rattanakiri province have recorded a rare and endangered Asiatic golden cat (Catopuma Temminckii)*, which is ranked as the near-extinct in the red list of IUCN.




* The Asiatic golden cat is also known as Temminck's cat and the Asian golden cat.

Beautiful and noble creature. I sincerely hope it doesn't end up on some Chinese guy's dinner table.

If I were them, I would never publish photos confirming these beasts existence and location...for obvious reasons.

I know a few Bong Thoms that surely will scramble to find this fantastic animal and end it.

Small cats in big trouble?
Diet, activity, and habitat use of jungle cats and leopard cats in threatened dry deciduous forests, Cambodia
March 2021Ecology and Evolution 11(9):4205-4217

https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio ... s_Cambodia

November 20, 2021
Wildlife Alliance Cambodia seeks fund to buy food truck
Sen David / Khmer Times

Leopard cub. Wildlife Alliance
Wildlife Alliance Cambodia yesterday has appealed for public donations to raise $38,000 to buy a food truck to deliver food for about 1,300 animals at the Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre.

It said: “With GlobalGiving’s incentive fund, the more you give, the larger share we receive out of $1 million in bonus funds. Get ready to help us,” it said.

It added that on 30 November, Wildlife Alliance will live stream from Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Centre.
“Join us to meet the team, meet rescued animals like this leopard cub and find out about the marathon journey to deliver food to all 1,000+ rescued animals at Phnom Tamao,” it said.

The leopard cub is a small wild cat native to continental South, Southeast and East Asia.
Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List as it is wildly distributed although threatened by habitat loss and hunting in parts of its range.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50974122/w ... ood-truck/