ZooChat Challenge UK 2013

Liable to miss them then, if they are fed at 5 - we booked trains that would permit us to stay at the zoo until 6pm, but since then engineering works near Welwyn have been announced which mean we now have to leave an hour and a half earlier in order not to miss our connection back up to the northeast

We basically intend to camp in front of the small cats more or less all day after seeing the other major ticks, so we may still strike lucky.

 

Well, I'd say getting only 4 species in the first 3 months of the year, then getting 19 species in less than 2 months, counts as being a dark horse coming from behind

 

Frankly, even if someone got 24 I would see it as worthwhile to keep the challenge open until December 31st, just in case jungle cat or another species - bobcat perhaps - arrived somewhere to make it interesting; after all, unlike the bear challenge, the 24 species currently in use as a target do not comprise all the species of cat that theoretically could be seen.

 

Lynx rufus to be precise. Just a shame Canada Lynx died out in the UK in recent years..... more of a shame they did so before I saw one.

 

Can't see why not?

 

There are four species of lynx:

Eurasian Lynx - Lynx lynx
Canada Lynx - Lynx canadensis
Bobcat - Lynx rufus
Iberian Lynx - Lynx pardinus

 

After a dry stretch, a visit to Marwell Zoo has bagged me another yeartick. For purposes of keeping track of where has what, it is worth observing Amazonworld on the Isle of Wight now no longer keep Geoffroy's Cat, as I learned yesterday.

Current running total - 15

Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) at Paignton - 27/01/2013

Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo persica) at Paignton - 27/01/2013

African Leopard (Panthera pardus pardus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

South African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Caracal (Caracal caracal) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Arabian Sand Cat (Felis margarita harrisoni) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Puma (Puma concolor) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Carpathian Lynx (Lynx lynx carpathicus) at Newquay Zoo - 29/01/2013

Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) at Shaldon - 30/01/2013

Jaguar (Panthera onca) at Chester- 25/02/2013

Scottish Wildcat (Felis sylvestris scoticus) at Edinburgh - 09/04/2013

Tibetan Golden Cat (Pardofelis temminickii tristis) at Edinburgh - 09/04/2013

Serval (Leptailurus serval) at Chester - 20/04/2013

Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) at Marwell - 09/06/2013

 

My long-awaited trip to Port Lympne bagged me four cat species, two of which are lifeticks - at this point, although not within 2013, I have seen all 24 species of felid present in the UK, which I see as something of a personal success.

The black-footed cat, amazingly enough considering the torrential rain which was in progress when myself and Hel arrived, was actually the very first species we saw today! The weather improved towards noon, and we did not fail to see the species every time we passed the enclosure - the first time we saw them, they were curled up in a dark corner of their enclosure and we almost missed them, whilst the next few times we passed the enclosure both adult individuals were basking in front of the windows into their sleeping quarters - sadly the combination of unwashed glass and sunlight reflecting against said glass meant our photos, although recognisable as Black-footed Cats, are not particularly good.

The first rusty-spotted cat we sighted was the offshow male who, as noted previously in the thread, is held quite visibly in an enclosure just behind the rusty cat enclosure which neighbours the fossa enclosure. We later saw multiple rusty cats - who were both highly active and highly visible - in the enclosure near to the clouded leopards.

The margays and clouded leopards were also highly active considering the poor weather at the start of the day; the same can actually be said of all but one of the cat species. The one single feline no-show of the day - actually the only no-show full stop - were the Pallas Cats, which therefore represent a species I still require for the challenge.

As such, my current total has been increased by 4.

Current running total - 19

Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) at Paignton - 27/01/2013

Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo persica) at Paignton - 27/01/2013

African Leopard (Panthera pardus pardus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

South African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Caracal (Caracal caracal) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Arabian Sand Cat (Felis margarita harrisoni) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Puma (Puma concolor) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) at Exmoor - 28/01/2013

Carpathian Lynx (Lynx lynx carpathicus) at Newquay Zoo - 29/01/2013

Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) at Shaldon - 30/01/2013

Jaguar (Panthera onca) at Chester- 25/02/2013

Scottish Wildcat (Felis sylvestris scoticus) at Edinburgh - 09/04/2013

Tibetan Golden Cat (Pardofelis temminickii tristis) at Edinburgh - 09/04/2013

Serval (Leptailurus serval) at Chester - 20/04/2013

Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia) at Marwell - 09/06/2013

Black-Footed Cat (Felis nigripes) at Port Lympne - 22/06/2013

Sri-Lankan Rusty Spotted Cat (Prionailurus rubiginosus phillipsi) at Port Lympne - 22/06/2013

Yucatan Margay (Leopardus wiedii yucatanicus) at Port Lympne - 22/06/2013

Indochinese Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa nebulosa) at Port Lympne - 22/06/2013