The beautiful Jinyintan Grassland is located in Haiyan County, Qinghai Province, bordering Qinghai Lake in the west and surrounded by high mountains in the east and north. The prairie is vast and boundless, like a huge green carpet spread over the earth. In this land, there lives a black-spotted wild cat, the prairie spotted cat. The face is round and strong, the temperament is violent, the combat effectiveness is strong, and even the wolf is not afraid.
Prairie spotted cats are highly adaptable to the natural environment, can survive in the desert, and can also adapt to the grassland environment. It is often active in semi-shrub deserts, grasslands, swamps, poplar forests and other areas, and sometimes in basins or forested areas below 1000 meters above sea level.
As a national second-level protected animal, the prairie spotted cat is wild and cannot be domesticated. It is mainly distributed in Gansu, western Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, Sichuan, Xinjiang, Tibet and other places.
<h1>01 One of the three cute cats in the west: with a "tiger face" and 4 black bands on the forehead, which can be cute and sweet or fierce</h1>
Many cats, gentle and cute on the outside, fierce and violent on the inside, are amazing in their means and abilities to predate. Cats living in western China always have a mysterious temperament.
Prairie spotted cat Prairie spotted cat is one of the subspecies of wild cats, also known as wild cats, desert spotted cats, earth beavers, and rabbits, desert cats, known as "western three cute cats", can be cute and sweet can be fierce.
From the appearance point of view, although the prairie spotted cat is thicker, it does not resemble a rabbit, but a little more like a desert cat. But it is not difficult to distinguish between the two, the desert cat has tufts of hair on the ears, and the prairie spotted cat is very short, almost none.
In the large family of cats, the prairie spotted cat has its own physical characteristics, with a relatively round face and 4 black bands on the forehead, which are contrasting. Cute with a temperament that is not angry and arrogant, much like a tiger, so it is called "tiger face".
Prairie spotted cats are larger than domestic cats, with a body length of 50-70 cm, a tail length of half of the body, about 25-35 cm, a weight of 8 kg, and a relatively stout figure.
The body hair is fluffy and soft, the back is yellowish-gray, and the whole body is covered with irregularly shaped brown-black patches that extend to the tail. At the end of the tail, there are three or four circles of black horizontal rings, which looks a little playful.
With a tiger face, eyes like jewels, and a cute and fierce prairie spotted cat, people really can't help but want to hug it, but it is wild and difficult to tame, and it can only be thought.
<h1>02 Assault method predation: quietly approach the prey to take a surprise attack, but also dare to fight with steppe wolves</h1>
Prairie spotted cats like to walk freely in deserts and meadows, and rarely accompany each other. It is more lazy, hiding leisurely in tree burrows and bushes during the day, and does not go out to move and forage until night, or at dusk. It is also more spontaneous and sometimes goes out during the day.
It feeds on small rodents, birds, lizards, etc., and sometimes insects. Faced with different kinds of prey, prairie spotted cats have their own set of hunting methods.
Don't look at it is always lazy and elegant, in fact, it is agile, but also pay attention to strategy, rather than reckless, it will use the assault method to prey.
Once the prey is found, quietly sneak close to the prey, and when the prey is not paying attention, it will suddenly attack. This "assault method", the success rate of predation is very high, and the prey does not know what the situation is, so it becomes the belly meal of the prairie spotted cat.
It is said that the prairie spotted cat has a violent personality and is not easy to provoke, in fact, the prairie spotted cat is even more fierce than you think. According to the observation of researchers, there have been cases of grassland spotted cats fighting with steppe wolves.
As we all know, the ferocity of the steppe wolf can be regarded as the "hegemon of one side", and few animals dare to provoke the steppe wolf. However, when the prairie spotted cat faced the steppe wolf, it had no fear, and with its agile hands, it was stunned to avoid the attack of the steppe wolf, and also left a "mark" on the steppe wolf with a blow.
<h1>03 occupies 0.5 square kilometers of territory: fight with the same kind of people and do not die until the victory or defeat is divided</h1>
According to China Green Times, each prairie spotted cat will occupy about 0.5 square kilometers as its own territory, and the sense of territory is particularly strong. In their own territory, they will never allow their kind to spread wilderness.
If another cat comes to its territory to hunt, it will chase the intruder mercilessly until it is driven out of its own territory.
Usually, they don't fight very much, and the two cats can forage and hunt in a place not far from each other, and they can get along, but sometimes they fight fiercely.
When the prairie spotted cat fights with his companions, he is particularly fierce, and if he really does not use his hands, he will not be killed as if he does not want to fight, and he must fight until the victory and defeat are divided.
According to the analysis of researchers, the grassland spotted cat fights, one is to defend its territory; the other is that when hunting, there is a conflict and contradiction. In order to avoid conflict, the prairie spotted cat will not cross the line unless it is a last resort.
However, there are exceptions, according to observation, sometimes two prairie spotted cats fight, but also suddenly stop and do not fight. One minute you are dead or alive, and the next minute you are dead.
<h1>04 Life expectancy of more than 15 years: Kittens are born 10 days before waking their eyes, and they live independently at 5 months</h1> old
Usually, prairie spotted cats will stay in their own territory, and when the breeding period is 1-3 months, they will go to other places to "visit the door", because there are not necessarily females in their territory.
In the process of seeking a spouse, it will also be accompanied by fighting. The male cat surrounds the female cat in heat, making a shrill cry and beginning a fierce battle, with the strong having the right to mate. If the physical strength is too weak, the female cat may not be able to find mating.
The female cat gives birth in 60 days of pregnancy and gives birth to 2-3 litters in a litter. The newborn kitten, still very weak, about 40 grams, will take 10 days to open its eyes and look at this novel world.
The lifespan of the prairie spotted cat is more than 15 years, and it is a natural process to grow from a small cat to a large cat and then slowly become an old cat.
Let's take a look at the growth experience of kittens: after 4-5 weeks, the kittens can go out and bask in the sun; after 3 months, they will go to forage with the mother cat and learn to hunt.
Learn to predate, grow up to 5 months old, you have to leave the cat mother, began to hunt independently and live independently. When the kitten is 1 year old, it reaches sexual maturity and has the ability to reproduce offspring.
<h1>epilogue</h1>
The prairie spotted cat looks very cute, but it is also fierce. It has tactics when preying, fights fiercely with its companions, and dares to fight with steppe wolves... Such a prairie spotted cat makes people have to love!
Snow Spirit Valley Animal Lab/Production
References: Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China Wildlife Conservation Association, China Green Times