Southern African wildcat
Felis silvestris cafra
The Southern African wildcat is one of five subspecies of the wildcat, and is native to southern and south-eastern Africa.
It was formerly considered conspecific with the African or Near Eastern wildcat , but has been recognised as a distinct subspecies on the basis of genetic analysis. Morphological evidence suggests the break between the two African subspecies to occur in the south-east, in the area of Tanzania and Mozambique.
In Afrikaans it is called 'vaalboskat'; in Swahili 'kaka mwiw', 'kimbum', or 'kaka pori'; in Herero 'ochawhi'; in Ndebele 'igola'. It is also known in English as the 'bush cat'.
It was formerly considered conspecific with the African or Near Eastern wildcat , but has been recognised as a distinct subspecies on the basis of genetic analysis. Morphological evidence suggests the break between the two African subspecies to occur in the south-east, in the area of Tanzania and Mozambique.
In Afrikaans it is called 'vaalboskat'; in Swahili 'kaka mwiw', 'kimbum', or 'kaka pori'; in Herero 'ochawhi'; in Ndebele 'igola'. It is also known in English as the 'bush cat'.