Prionailurus planiceps / Kucing Hutan

Scientific Classification

Kingdom Animalia


Phylum Chordata


Class Mammalia


Order Carnivora


Family Felidae


Subfamily Felinae


Genus Prionailurus


Species Planiceps



Taxonomy

One of only two felids lacking any classically described subspecies (Nowell and Jackson 1996). They are placed in Prionailurus according to genetic analysis (Johnson et al. 2006, O'Brien and Johnson 2007, Eizirk et al. 2008). Recent genetic analyses have lead to the proposal that all modern cats can be placed into eight lineages which originated between 6.2 - 10.8 million years ago. The flat-headed cat is placed in the "leopard cat lineage," which diverged from its ancestors as a separate lineage 6.2 million years ago. The leopard cat lineage also includes the pallas cat, the rusty-spotted cat, the leopard cat, and the fishing cat. (Johnson et al. 2006)



Description

The flat-headed cat appears remarkably adapted to a life of piscivory, or fish-eating (Leyhausen 1979). They are about the size of a domestic cat, but possesses a flat but long head and round ears. The flat-headed cat looks similar to a civet and it is adapted to partially-aquatic living. It has a long, sloping snout and flattened skull roof, and its unusually small ears are set well down on the sides of the head. It has large, close-set eyes which provide maximal binocular vision, and the anterior upper pre-molars are larger and sharper relative to other cats. Their teeth face backwards to help the cat hold on to slippery prey, like frogs. A more developed premolar is characteristic of mammals that hunt slippery prey, and provides a better grip (Lyddeker 1896). Finally, the fleshy sheaths that cover a cat’s claws are shortened in the flat-headed cat, so that only about one-third of each claw is covered when retracted (Ewer 1973).

While the flat-headed cat’s claws do not rub against the ground when walking, they are always visible. Its toes are more completely webbed than the fishing cat’s (Leyhausen 1979), and the pads are long and narrow, similar to the Bornean bay cat (Pocock 1932b). Muul and Lim (1970), commenting on the cat’s feet and other features, termed it the ecological counterpart of a semi-aquatic mustelid, and Leyhausen (1979) has commented on several behavior patterns (prey capture, scent-marking) which are similar to those of both mustelids and viverrids. The pelage of the flat-headed cat is thick and soft, and of a reddish-brown color tinged with grey, with the top of the head more brightly red. Wild adults have weighed 1.5-2.5 kg (Banks 1949, Muul and Lim 1970). The tail is very short, only 25-35% of head body length (TL=13-17 cm: Yasuma and Alikodra 1990).



Distribution and Habitat
Around the year 1985, the flat-headed cat was classified as extinct, but luckily, they were not. In 1995 they were removed from the extinct list when they were spotted in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand. According to survey on year 2005, they are occurs in Brunei, Indonesia (Kalimantan, Sumatra), Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore (introduced) and Thailand (IUCN 2005). It is a lowland species strongly associated with wetlands (Nowell and Jackson 1996; Sunquist and Sunquist 2002). The flat-headed cat's habitats are forests near rivers and river banks.

Most collection records for the flat-headed cat are from swampy areas, oxbow lakes and riverine forest (C. Groves in litt. 1993). The only information on altitudinal range for the species (up to 700 m in the Dulit mountains of Sarawak: Hose 1893) is 100 years old. It may be less specialized than presently believed in its habitat requirements, as indicated by sightings in oil palm plantations in Malaysia, where it apparently hunts rodents (M. Khan in litt. 1991). It is not known north of the Isthmus of Kra (Lekagul and McNeely 1977, U. Ohn in litt. 1993).



Diet

The stomach contents of an adult shot on a Malaysian riverbank consisted only of fish (Muul and Lim 1970), and the stomach of a male killed on a road in a Kalimantan forest reserve contained fish scales and shrimp shells (S. Yasuma in litt. 1993). In Borneo, flat-headed cats are most frequently observed at night along riverbanks, hunting frogs and fish (Banks 1949; J. Payne, A. Rabinowitz in litt. 1993. Live fish are readily taken, with full submergence of the head, and the fish were usually carried at least two meters away, suggesting a feeding strategy to avoid letting aquatic prey escape back into water (Muul and Lim 1970; M. Rosenthal, S. Yasuma in litt. 1993).

Their diet includes crustaceans, frogs, fish and, as a last resort, rodents. Although Muul and Lim (1970) reported that their captive cat did not chase after sparrows, the cat at the Lincoln Park Zoo took live chicks (M. Rosenthal in litt. 1993). Banks (1949) stated that the flat-headed cat was not a poultry raider, but Guggisberg (1975) noted that the only specimen seen by ornithologist B.N. Smythies during his 20 years in Sarawak was shot while chasing chickens. In addition, M. Khan (in litt. 1991) reports that a female flat-headed cat was captured in Perak, Peninsular Malaysia, in a trap set to catch common civets preying on poultry.



Behavior

In the wild, the flat-headed cat is believed to be nocturnal, but in captivity they exhibit crepuscular (active at dusk and dawn) behavior. Like most other cats, this cat is solitary, using scent to mark its territory. Captive flat-headed cats show a great affinity for water. At one facility, when a captive kitten was given a large bowl of water, it immediately jumped in and began to play. It would submerge its head completely to depths of at least 12 cm (5") to seize pieces of fish, and it sometimes played in the water for hours.

It also caught live frogs, but ignored sparrows that were put in its cage. It "washed" its food in water, and in another captive situation, adult flat-headed cats were seen to grope on the bottom of a pool with their forepaws spread wide, much like a raccoon. Furthermore, these adults were much more excited by a mouse in their bathtub than one on dry land; by standing either in the water or next to the tub, they would try to fish out the mouse with their teeth or paws. (Sunquist & Sunquist 2002)



Reproduction and Offspring

The size of a typical litter is between one and four kittens. In captivity, these cats have lived up to 14 years of age. Almost nothing is known of the reproductive behavior of flatheaded cats. A kitten was found in the wild in January. It was still with its mother, who was killed. It is believed that the gestation period is about 56 days, with one to four kittens born. Adult females have four sets of nipples. (ISEC Canada, 2000; Kitchner, 1991). Flatheaded cats may resemble othe closely related cats in some reproductive parameters. The closely related fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrina) has mating peaks in January and February. In India, fishing cat births occur from March through May. Young become independent around 10 months of age. In leopard cats (Prionailurus bengalensis), a female who has lost a litter may produce another within 5 months. Young leopard cats can reach sexual maturity by 8 months of age.



Life Span

14 years



Population Status

Global : Category 2

Regional : Category 1

IUCN : Insufficiently Known

The flat-headed cat is seldom encountered and is believe to be rare. The flat-headed cat is closely associated with wetlands and lowland forests, habitats which are increasingly being occupied and modified by people. It has never been studied, there are few records of the species, and it is generally considered rare, with a highly localized distribution around bodies of water (Nowell and Jackson 1996, Anon 1999, Bezuijen 2000, Sunquist and Sunquist 2002, Meijaard et al. 2005, Yasuda et al. 2007, Barita and Boeadi pers. comm.2006). Although fishermen along the Merang river in south Sumatra (which has relatively intact peat forests) described it as common (Bezuijen 2000), they tend to use a single generic term for both flat-headed and leopard cats Prionailurus bengalensis, a more abundant species (Bezuijen 2003). The flat-headed cat’s total effective population size is estimated at below 10,000 mature breeding individuals (IUCN 2005).



Protection Status

Protection Status : CITES Appendix I

National Legislation : Fully protected over most of its range

Hunting and Trade Prohibited: Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand

Hunting Regulated : Singapore

No Legal Protection : Brunei (Nichols et al. 1991; U. Ohn in litt.1993)



Threats

Wetland destruction and degradation is the primary threat faced by the species (Nowell and Jackson 1996). Causes of this destruction include human settlement, draining for agriculture, pollution, and excessive hunting, wood-cutting and fishing. In addition, clearance of coastal mangroves over the past decade has been rapid in Tropical Asia. Water pollution, especially by oil, organochlorines and heavy metals associated with agricultural run-off and logging activities, poses a serious threat to the flat-headed cat through contamination of its prey. This is a major problem throughout much of the flat-headed cat’s range (Foster-Turley et al. 1990).

In addition, waterways are often the areas first cleared by people as settlement expands into the forested areas (Collins et al. 1991). The depletion of fish stocks from over-fishing is prevalent in many Asian wetland environments and is likely to be a significant threat. Expansion of oil palm plantations is currently viewed as the most urgent threat (IUCN Cats Red List workshop assessment, 2007). Trapping, snaring and poisoning are also threats: E. Bennett (in Sunquist and Sunquist 2002) reported that skins were frequently seen in longhouses in the interior of Sarawak, and flat-headed cats have been captured in traps set out to protect domestic fowl (Nowell and Jackson 1996)