Yamamayaa (Mountain cat), Yamapikaryaa (Mountain Sparkling-eyed cat), Pingiimayaa (Escaped cat)
The Iriomote cat (Prionailurus bengalensis iriomotensis) is a subspecies of the Leopard cat that lives exclusively on the Japanese island of Iriomote. It is viewed by many biologists as a "living fossil," and is not much changed from its primitive form. First described by Dr. Imaizumi of Tokyo’s National Science Museum in 1967, this wild cat is about the size of a domestic cat and has the short legs of a predator that forages in thick undergrowth. These animals in the wild live for 7-8 years, and 8-9 in captivity, with the longest lifespan known in captivity to be 15 years.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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CrepuscularCrepuscular animals are those that are active primarily during twilight (that is, the periods of dawn and dusk). This is distinguished from diurnal...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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Island endemicIsland endemic animals are found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island. Animals or organisms that are indigenous to a place ar...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
Among animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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Serial monogamySerial monogamy is a mating system in which a pair bonds only for one breeding season.
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SolitaryNo
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe fur of the Iriomote cat is mostly dark gray and light brown, with lighter hair on the belly and insides of the limbs. Hair along the jaw is white. There are two dark brown spots on each cheek. There are 5-7 stripes spanning from the forehead to the back of the head, but, unlike the leopard cat, the stripes stop before reaching the shoulders. Dark brown spots cover the sides of the body, and there are 3-4 bands of irregular stripes on the chest. The tail is dark brown; darker spots pattern the back side of the tail while the underside of the tail is solid. The tip of the tail is dark. The tips of the ears are rounded, with black hair along the edge. There are no tufts of longer hair on the top of the ears. Adult Iriomote cats have a white spot on the back of each ear, much like those found on tigers' ears. Young Iriomote cats do not have these marks, and even as adults the spots will not be as white as those seen on other leopard cat subspecies. The Iriomote cat's eyes are a light amber color. Its nose is large and flat, with no fur covering the reddish-brown skin. The paw ranges from 29-37 mm (1.1-1.5 in) wide, in contrast to the 24-30 mm (0.94-1.18 in) wide paw of a domestic cat.
The Iriomote cat is endemic to Iriomote Island only, the southernmost island in the Ryukyu Archipelago of Japan. This island is mountainous, with broadleaf, evergreen, subtropical rainforests. Along its estuaries are mangroves and there are beaches and areas of cultivated land. Iriomote cats can be found all over this island, usually near to a water source. They avoid heavily populated areas.
Iriomote cats are usually solitary, but some may form pairs during breeding. Their territories measure 1 to 3 sq km, with males having larger territories than females. The territories of males can overlap, whereas those of females are less likely to. Females have home ranges that are more stable and they seem to use the same feeding site for a number of years, whereas males change the areas where they are active after several months. These cats are mainly active from evening until early morning, but occasionally they hunt during the day, when apparently they prey upon a species of skink that is diurnal. During the mating season they are also active during the day, and the breeding females show more activity than the nonbreeding ones during late night and morning. Although often travelling along the ground, these cats are good tree climbers, which indicates that they spend some time hunting or at rest in trees.
Iriomote cats are carnivores, they eat almost all the animals on the island, including small mammals (like fruit bats and rats), frogs, birds, snakes, lizards, insects and sometimes fish and crabs.
Outside of the mating season, Iriomote cats are solitary, but during the time of breeding they act together, which suggests they may exhibit a serially monogamous mating system (mating with only one partner in one breeding season). The breeding season appears to be mainly from winter to spring, with most mating probably taking place from February to March, because the months of birth are April to July. Gestation lasts for about 60 days, with females giving birth to 1 - 2 young. Youngsters grow rapidly and are weaned when 2 -3 months old. At 4 - 5 months old they are independent, and they reach maturity when they are 8 months to one year old.
The greatest threat to the Iriomote cat is interbreeding and competition with feral domestic cats. Inbreeding among themselves, because it is a single population, combined with interbreeding, strongly dilutes this species’ genetic integrity and thus threatens its existence, as well as exposing it to a wide range of introduced diseases. The development and expansion of the island for tourism is damaging the natural habitat due to the development of roads (leading to road deaths), dams, hotels, airports, etc.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total Iriomote cat population size is around 100-110 individuals. Currently this species is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) and its numbers today continue to decrease.
Iriomote cats in this island ecosystem are key predators, preying on a range of organisms.
