Swamp Cat: The King of the Swamp

from the shores of the nile to the jungles of vietnam lives a species that has conquered the myriad of terrain in this 8 000 kilometer stretch [Music] this is one of the most widespread cats that you've probably never heard of the swamp cat [Music] the swamp cat also known as the jungle cat reed cat or incorrectly the swamp lynx is the feline equivalent of a jackal an animal that can survive in a variety of habitats and subsist on a variety of diets this all-terrain feline has adapted to life in an incredible variety of habitats savannah grassland desert wetland and forest found all the way from the pyramids in egypt past angkor wat these cats have conquered more distance than genghis khan [Music] the swamp cats are defined by their adaptability despite their ability to thrive in a variety of environments they are best suited for life in the wetlands like swamps and reeds towards the mediterranean they are primarily found in wetlands while in central asia they're most often found in river valleys while their populations are relatively healthy in the foothills of the himalayas they don't do terribly well in cold weather and have a warm weather coat thus limiting their range to the north despite one of their names being the jungle cat one of the habitats that they don't do particularly well in is their namesake the jungle high canopy forests like rainforests don't have as many small plants on the ground for the cats to hide in leaving them vulnerable to predators [Music] in the wetlands however the abundance of low vegetation keeps them much safer even though they thrive in multiple habitats the wetlands are what they are built for they have long graceful legs which allow them to walk through flooded terrain with ease [Music] their coats are reddish beige with dark stripes along their tail to help them camouflage in dense foliage swamp cats also have long tufted ears which help them camouflage by breaking up their outline while hiding in vegetation these tufts also make them resemble another felid the lynx yet despite their ears they're much more closely related to the black-footed cat and you guessed it the domestic cat and they share a diet with their cousins too though theirs is much broader their diet varies by region but is generally made up of rodents and small animals weighing under a kilogram like young hogs baby gazelles ducks and chatols one of the reasons that swamp cats are able to thrive in such differing territories is their ability to eat a wide variety of food including veggies in some areas including uzbekistan about 15 percent of their diet is made up of olives but this cat has a rise on something tastier than an olive like domestic cats swamp cats are ambush hunters she slowly approaches her prey she needs to get as close as possible before striking [Music] stealth is her friend if her pounce fails she'll have to go on the pursuit but being able to run up to 32 kilometers an hour catching a rat snake shouldn't prove too difficult the dense vegetation gives her an advantage masking her body as she approaches now within range she pounces [Music] she grabs the snake mistaking its tail for its head the rat snake retaliates biting her in the neck she recovers as the snake attempts to escape she follows grabbing the snake by its neck this time suffocating it [Music] hunting primarily at dusk and dawn she'll spend the rest of her day basking in the sun until it's cooled down and she's ready to go back out on the prowl like most cats the swamp cat is a solitary species and the only time they'll be seen together is when it's time to mate the males are larger than the females weighing between five and nine kilograms and it's the females that do all the parenting while the swamp cat is considered a species of least concern their numbers are decreasing across their range habitat destruction due to deforestation is their main concern as are regulations in india for example a large part of their territory is considered wasteland and thus subject to much less environmental regulation leaving the swamp cat with few ambassadors fortunately occupying territory twice the width of the united states these all-terrain felines stand a good chance at weathering the storm so what should i talk about next please let me know in the comments and be sure to subscribe for new episodes of animal logic every other week thanks for watching [Music] you

Channel: Animalogic

Views: 2,126,997

Keywords: animals, animal, logic, education, show, animalogic, crazy, ugly, weird, gross, beautiful, interesting, facts, animalsfacts, about, information, info, school, research, learn, learning, fun, smart, swamp cat, swamp thing, snake eater, metal gear, snake, cat hunts snake, cat in water, cat in swamp, rare, wild cat, exotic cat, rate, south asia, fisher, fishing, teeth, duck, fish, unknown, small cats, small cats unknown, what is that, diving, under water shot, cat swim, fishing cat, sand cat, serval, kitten, kittens

Id: FFexDDjRvm4

Length: 6min 34sec (394 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 10 2020