The influence of visitors on the welfare of captive animals, known as the visitor effect, may in some instances be stressful, adversely affecting animal health. Although the survival of many felid species depends on captive breeding programmes, little is known about this effect. A better understanding of the visitor effect is required to ensure the well-being of felids and the success of breeding programmes. We sought to determine whether the presence of visitors affects behaviour patterns and space use in five feline species in two Spanish zoos: Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), jaguar (Panthera onca), bobcat (Lynx rufus),ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) and Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) and, if so, whether the effect on animal welfare is positive or negative. To our knowledge, no previous research has addressed the visitor effect in these species, with the exception of the jaguar. Data on animal behaviour, enclosure use, and visitor density were collected during the spring and summer of 2011 and 2012. Changes were observed for all studied species when the zoo was open to the public: four species devoted less time to complex behaviour (ie play, walk) and spent more time resting; ocelots and bobcats made more use of hidden spaces and less use of areas closer to visitors, while the jaguar tended to do the opposite. No correlation was found between visitor density and animal activity, indicating that animals are affected by the mere presence of visitors, regardless of their number. Our findings are in line with those reported by other authors, who have suggested that these behavioural changes are linked to chronic stress. Visitor effect was classed as negative for the welfare of all studied species apart from the jaguar. We advocate the need for future research into potential solutions to mitigate the adverse effect of visitors on felids.

Sarawak is the largest state in the megadiverse country of Malaysia. Its rich biodiversity is threatened by land-use change and hunting, with mammalian carnivores particularly affected. Data on the ecology, occurrence and distribution of small carnivores are crucial to inform their effective conservation, but no large-scale assessments have previously been conducted in Sarawak. Here we examine the status of the five species of felids in Sarawak based on data from camera-trap studies over 17 years (May 2003–February 2021) across 31 study areas, including protected areas of various sizes, production forests and forest matrix within oil palm plantations. Felids were detected at 39% of 845 camera stations. The marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata and Sunda clouded leopard Neofelis diardi had higher probabilities of occurrence in protected than unprotected areas, and vice versa for the leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis and bay cat Catopuma badia. The marbled and bay cats were mostly diurnal, and the leopard cat was predominantly nocturnal; activity patterns did not substantively differ between protected and unprotected sites. The probabilities of occurrence of marbled and bay cats increased with greater distance from roads. The leopard cat and flat-headed cat Prionailurus planiceps were more likely, and the clouded leopard less likely, to occur near rivers. Flat-headed cats preferred peat swamp forest, bay cats lowland forest, and marbled cats and clouded leopards occurred in both lowland and montane forest. Felids may tolerate higher elevations to avoid anthropogenic disturbance; therefore, it is critical to preserve lowland and mid-elevation habitats that provide refugia from climate change and the destruction of lowland habitat.

Habitat fragmentation threatens biodiversity worldwide, particularly affecting large-bodied species that require vast territories and move across long distances, including most large felids. The jaguar Panthera onca has lost more than half of its habitat throughout its range and its subpopulations are becoming isolated, making them susceptible to local extinction. Knowledge about the status of its subpopulations in highly fragmented environments is lacking but urgently needed. Using camera traps during 2019–2020, we estimated number of individuals, age classes and sex ratio, occupancy, relative abundance and density of jaguars in Nayarit, western Mexico. We also determined the relative abundance of potential prey and estimated the land-cover change rate during 1999–2019, using GIS. We found that a resident subpopulation of five adult females, two adult males and one cub, at a high density (5.3 individuals/100 km2), is supported by at least 14 wild prey species. Natural habitat in the area is rapidly decreasing because of expanding agriculture and shrimp farming: agricultural areas increased from 39 to 50% and mangroves decreased from 35 to 26% of the study area over 20 years. The high jaguar population density and the diversity and relative abundance of remaining wild prey are remarkable, considering that natural habitat in the area is highly fragmented, shrinking rapidly and embedded in a matrix of human-dominated land-cover types. Effective conservation actions are needed urgently, including the protection of patches with native vegetation, reforestation to maintain connectivity between these patches, and the involvement of local communities.

The eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, a global biodiversity hotspot, is threatened by habitat degradation. Conservation actions are required in this region, but limited knowledge of large and medium-sized mammals is hampering conservation planning. Using 149 camera traps, we surveyed large and medium-sized mammals in Xionglongxi Provincial Nature Reserve and adjacent areas, on the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, during September 2016–May 2017. We obtained 5,752 independent captures of 29 large and medium-sized mammal species, including 13 that are globally threatened and 22 that are nationally threatened in China. Carnivores were especially diverse, with 16 species recorded. Of particular significance was our detection of seven felid species, including the leopard Panthera pardus and the snow leopard Panthera uncia. Our record of the Chinese mountain cat Felis bieti extends the known range of this species. We documented new upper elevation limits for eight species. There was elevational overlap between the leopard and the snow leopard, suggesting potential competition between the two species. The grey wolf Canis lupus and the leopard were the dominant predators, and the woolly hare Lepus oiostolus and several species of ungulates were the most frequently photographed prey species. The study area maintains a significant community of large and medium-sized mammals, which is more diverse than in other areas on the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. We recommend the establishment of a larger nature reserve of national protection status in the region of the Xionglongxi Provincial Nature Reserve, to protect the unique subalpine and alpine ecosystems in this area.

From excavation at FLK North levels 1–2 in 1960–1962, Mary Leakey reported approximately 1200 Oldowan artifacts and 3300 large mammal fossils as a hominin “living floor”. Preliminary taphonomic analysis by Bunn seemed supportive, based on the presence of some cut-marked bones, the concentration of several dozen bovid individuals, and the relative abundance of limbs and mandibles over other axial elements. Recent taphonomic analysis of Leakey's entire fossil assemblage by Domínguez-Rodrigo and Barba, however, documents a minor hominin role at the site, contrasted to the dominant role of carnivores. Felids brought prey animals; hyenas scavenged from abandoned felid meals. At different times, hominins butchered several bovids and discarded artifacts at this dynamic location. Since 2006, renewed excavations at FLK North and other sites by the Olduvai Paleoanthropology and Paleoecology Project (TOPPP) have expanded artifact and fossil samples and implemented new analytical approaches to clarify taphonomic histories of the Olduvai paleolandscape. At FLK North, > 1000 new large mammal fossils from levels 1 to 2 show minimal butchery evidence amid abundant evidence of carnivore gnawing/fracture, rodent gnawing, and sediment abrasion. To help guide future excavation and analyses, we have developed several alternative working hypotheses of site formation.

Laos harbours globally significant populations of small carnivores, including mustelids and viverrids of conservation concern and felids that are relatively rare or unknown from other parts of Asia. However, few have received conservation attention as managers still lack basic information on the status and distribution of even the most common species. We conducted the country’s first systematic camera-trap monitoring of carnivores in the Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected Area on the Laos–Vietnam border, with intensive sampling across 500 km2 from 543 to 2,288 m altitude for 8,499 camera-trap days during 2003–2006. Surveys detected 14 species of small carnivores, including the first record of Owston’s civet Chrotogale owstoni for Laos. Preliminary occupancy estimates for the seven most common species ranged from 11% for marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata to 42% for Asian golden cat Pardofelis temminckii. Activity patterns of viverrids were primarily nocturnal whereas mustelids, except for hog badger Arctonyx collaris, were diurnal. Leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis was largely nocturnal, marbled cat primarily diurnal and Asian golden cat as likely detected during the day as at night. Our results led to the establishment of a contiguous 3,000-km2 protected area core zone and regulations that protect threatened species and control harvest of managed species.

As top predators, wild cats play a key ecological role in tropical forests, but little is known about the factors that regulate their abundance. This study looked for correlates of ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) abundance at two spatial scales. First, camera-trap surveys conducted in the Atlantic Forest of Misiones, Argentina, were used to test the hypothesis that selective logging and poaching affect the local abundance of this cat. Second, published density estimates (N = 21) were used to test the hypothesis that rainfall and latitude are correlated with the abundance of ocelots across their continental range. In Misiones, ocelot densities ranged from 4.96 ± 1.33 individuals per 100 km2 in the intensely logged and hunted areas to 17.6 ± 2.25 individuals per 100 km2 in areas with low human impact. The frequency of records, number of individuals recorded per station, and density estimates were 2–3 times higher in areas with relatively low levels of logging and poaching. At a continental scale, ocelot densities decrease with latitude and increase with rainfall. Primary productivity seems to determine the abundance of wild cats across their range, but at a local scale their abundance may be affected by logging and poaching or by competition with other species.

Many small carnivores include rodents in their diet. However, due to varying evolutionary strategies, carnivores differ in their metabolism and energy requirements. Hence, comparisons of diet between carnivores would be more meaningful if the body size and energetics of the predators are considered. The diet of three small carnivores (jungle cat Felis chaus; caracal Caracal caracal; golden jackal Canis aureus) from a semi-arid part of western India was studied through scat analysis, and the importance of rodents in their diet was estimated as a percentage of their daily energy requirement. Although percentage frequency in scats and biomass consumption showed rodents to be equally important to all three carnivores, energy calculations showed that rodents were more important as prey for the felids than the jackal. Up to 70% of the daily metabolizable energy in felids was obtained from rodents, as compared to 45% in the jackal. Rodents are generally viewed as pests, and their importance to the small carnivore community is overlooked. Change in land use over the decades in the arid/semi-arid tract of western India has led to several adverse as well as favourable modifications in rodent assemblages, which could influence the persistence of species like the caracal and jungle cat in this region, that largely depend on rodents for their survival.