WCS-supported research produces camera trap footage showing African predator in Uganda park

NEW YORK (November 12, 2013) — The Wildlife Conservation Society and Panthera released camera trap footage today from Uganda’s Kibale National Park showing a rarely seen African golden cat.

The cat was recorded scent-marking after it was attracted to a camera site “baited” with Calvin Klein Obsession for Men, which is frequently used by WCS scientists to attract cats and other wildlife to remote cameras.

WCS is supporting a study of these poorly known forest-dependent cats to better understand their conservation needs and how they may be affected by overhunting and deforestation.

The first known wild footage of a golden cat was taken in 2011 by Panthera scientists in Gabon. One surprising finding of this ongoing research is that these cats are not strictly nocturnal as previously thought, but “cathemeral” – active both night and day. Nevertheless, most scientists working in Africa’s rain forests have never seen a live specimen in the wild.

African golden cats live in tropical forests in West, Central, and East Africa. They can weigh up to 35 pounds (16 kilograms) and feed on birds, rodents, monkeys, and other mammals.

CONTACT:
STEPHEN SAUTNER: (1-718-220-3682; ssautner@wcs.org)
JOHN DELANEY: (1-718-220-3275; jdelaney@wcs.org)
The Wildlife Conservation Society saves wildlife and wild places worldwide. We do so through science, global conservation, education and the management of the world's largest system of urban wildlife parks, led by the flagship Bronx Zoo. Together these activities change attitudes towards nature and help people imagine wildlife and humans living in harmony. WCS is committed to this mission because it is essential to the integrity of life on Earth. Visit www.wcs.org.