Asia, the largest continent in the world, is home to several big cats and small wild cats. The big cats are the tiger, leopard, Asiatic lion, snow leopard and clouded leopard. There are also several small wild cats such as the marbled cat, fishing cat, Asiatic wildcat and Asiatic golden cat.
More About Asia
Asia covers almost 9% of the planet. With more than 4.3 billion people, it also has the highest human population on Earth. There are 48 countries in Asia, including Russia.
Geography ranges from coastal areas (Asia has the largest coastline in the world) to the Himalayan mountain range with some of the highest peaks on the planet. The climate is also diverse, including desert, tropical, arctic and subarctic regions.
Asian Wild Cat Species
Big Cats
Big cats that are native to the region include the clouded leopard, tiger, leopard, Asiatic lion and snow leopard.
The clouded leopard is a small wild cat that can be found in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains (Nepal, Bhutan and India to Myanmar), across Southeastern Asia and into China. They mostly inhabit tropical forests.
Tiger populations have decreased in the world by 95%. Most of the tigers that are left inhabit Asia. They include the Sumatran tiger, Amur (Siberian) tiger, Indian (Bengal) tiger, South China tiger, Malayan tiger and Indo-Chinese tiger. Three tiger species, the Javan, Caspian and Bali tiger, are now extinct. It is estimated that there are more than 5,000 tigers living in captivity, compared to only 3,890 tigers still living in the wild.
There are several species of leopards that live in Asia, the Indian leopard (Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh), the Javan leopard (Java), the Anatolian leopard (Southern Russia), the Amur leopard (Russian Far East and northern China), the Indochinese leopard (Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and South China), and the Sri Lankan leopard (Sri Lanka).
The home of the Asiatic lion, also called the “Indian lion” and “Persian lion” is India. Its range is the Gir National Park.
Snow leopards live in Central and South Asia. During the winter, snow leopards roam forests in altitudes of 1,200 to 2,000 feet. During the summer, they can be found above the tree line at altitudes up to almost 20,000 feet.
Small Wild Cats
Asia has more small wild cats than any other continent. Here is a list of the cats:
We are an informal group of conservationists interested in having a positive impact on conservation issues in Asia. Through this website and on-the-ground projects, we emphasize the importance of communication and collaboration in solving the complex cons
A partnership between the Iranian Department of Enviornment and U.N. Development Programme to safeguard the last remaining, critically endanged Asiatic cheetah.
Advances the conservation of the world’s 37 felidae species and their habitats through a combination of pioneering research, compelling education and state-of-the-art technology.
The Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is a forest and wildlife sanctuary in Gujarat, India. Our goal is to conserve the Asiatic Lion and its habitat for its long term survival there by retrieving it from the list of endangered species.
Non-governmental, non-profitable organization in order to save the biodiversity with the Asiatic cheetah as flagship species which is left only in Iran.
Organized by the Siberian Environmental Center (Novosibirsk) to support and develop initiatives dedicated to the study and conservation of the Pallas' cat.
Our mission is to conserve the exceptionally rich fauna and flora of the Russian Far East, the only region where Amur tigers and leopards survive in the wild.
Advances community-based stewardship of these endangered big cats through grassroots conservation initiatives, range-country environmental education, training of herders in wildlife monitoring, and collaborative research blending traditional knowledge and
mproving natural habitats for native wild animals in Thailand, TSCWA projects research forest areas and work towards reintroducing some species that have been exploited to endangered levels.
A campaign of the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation. Funding for "vital anti-poaching patrols, undercover investigations, educational programmes and monitoring activities central to the survival of the tiger in the wild."
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