The World's Smallest Cat
The rusty cat has won the title of the smallest wildcat in the world, weighing about 0.8-1.6 kg, and between 35 and 48 cm tall (except for the tail), which is only half the body.
The reason the cat is called this is because it contains short gray fur on most of its body, with chest spots on its back and wings.
It has white bellies with large dark spots and they have six dark strips on each side of their heads, stretching over the forehead and cheeks.
 |
| The rusty cat |
The spotted rusty cat was found only in India and Sri Lanka, and is known as the "Hummingbird of the Cat Family"
The rusty cat spotted on the drop mostly like other wild cats due to habitat loss and hunting pressures for their coat and even for food.
Rusty cat prefers dense plants, habits of deciduous forests and rocky areas, are preying on small organisms such as frogs, rodents, reptiles and small birds, and may prey on local poultry that sometimes leads to conflicts with humans. Read also: Know The 7 Dangers Of Declawing Cats Now Or Youll Hate Yourself Later.
The World's Second Smallest Cat
The black-footed cat (Felis nigripes) is the smallest cat in Africa and is considered the second smallest wild cat in the world. It weighs 1-2.5 kg and is about 36-52 cm in length.
It lives in arid South-West Africa and prefers pastures with some vegetation, dry and open savannahs.
The black-footed cat is a nocturnal unlike the rusty cat spotted in they're very sociable, however, they are also very brave and will hold their land, called tigers or ants in parts of South Africa because of this insistence.
 |
| The black-footed cat |
They hunt small prey like rodents and small birds, they have high energy requirements (they need a day to about 250 grams) and kill up to 14 small animals per night.
They get their name from the bottom of their feet that are completely black, the black-footed cat coat is tan to reddish brown, covered with dark spots and legs have wide dark lines, and their tails are surrounded by black lines and a black tip. This helps them camouflage.
There is an interesting feature of the black-footed cat which is an adaptation, where it gets the most moisturizing from their prey and licks the dew on the long grass. So they can go long periods without drinking water from the permanent bodies of water. For more details and information about the Smallest cat in the world, click here.