"We saw three pairs of glowing eyes": scientists for the first time managed to photograph the kittens of a dune cat
Categories:
Animals |
After four long years of patient and diligent search and research, people finally managed to capture the kittens of the dune cat on camera for the first time.
The dune cat is the only species among wild cats that lives only in hot and arid areas, deserts. They are found in North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. The number of the species is still unknown, because the dune cats differ in an extremely secretive way of life, they are incredibly difficult to find.
Source: Panthera
The color of the skin allows the dune cats to merge with the habitat, and the furry paws do not leave traces.
They move under the cover of night and do not leave behind any signs of vital activity. Therefore, the fact that the Panthera organization team managed to capture kittens on camera is truly amazing. A team led by Gregory Breton and Dr. Alexandra Sliwa discovered kittens aged six to eight weeks in April 2017. Scientists noticed the animals when they were driving at night to their camp in the Moroccan Sahara and saw three pairs of glowing eyes in the dark. The researchers couldn't believe their luck and filmed the kittens for an hour. They managed to put a radio collar on an adult, probably the mother of kittens. Gregory Breton told: "It's just incredible that we found kittens. We believe this is the first time that people have managed to photograph the cubs of a dune cat."Keywords: Cats | Desert | Scientists