VanBoas1588 at 12:57, 23 November 2025

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{{Short description|Species of feline}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Marbled cat
| image = Marbled cat borneo.jpg
| image_caption = A marbled cat in [[Danum Valley Conservation Area|Danum Valley]], [[Borneo]]
| status = NT
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Pardofelis marmorata'' |name-list-style=amp |author=Ross, J. |author2=Brodie, J. |author3=Cheyne, S. |author4=Datta, A. |author5=Hearn, A. |author6=Loken, B. |author7=Lynam, A.J. |author8=McCarthy, J. |author9=Phan, C. |author10=Rasphone, A. |author11=Singh, P. |author12=Wilting, A. |date=2016 |article-number=e.T16218A97164299 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T16218A97164299.en |access-date=16 January 2022}}</ref>
| status2 = CITES_A1
| status2_system = CITES
| status2_ref = <ref name=iucn/>
| genus = Pardofelis
| species = marmorata<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Wozencraft |id=14000177 |heading=Species ''Pardofelis marmorata'' |page=542}}</ref>
| authority = ([[William Charles Linnaeus Martin|Martin]], 1836)
| range_map = MarbledCat_distribution.jpg
| range_map_caption = Distribution of marbled cat, 2016<ref name=iucn />
| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies
| subdivision = *''P. m. charltoni''
*''P. m. marmorata''
}}

The '''marbled cat''' ('''''Pardofelis marmorata''''') is a small [[Felidae|wild cat]] native from the [[eastern Himalayas]] to [[Southeast Asia]], where it inhabits forests up to an elevation of {{cvt|2500|m|ft}}. As it is present in a large range, it has been listed as [[Near Threatened]] on the [[IUCN Red List]] since 2015.<ref name=iucn />

The marbled cat is closely related to the [[Asian golden cat]] (''Catopuma temminckii'') and the [[bay cat]] (''C. badia''), all of which diverged from other [[Felidae|felids]] about 9.4 million years ago.<ref name=Johnson_al2006>{{Cite journal |last1=Johnson |first1=W. E. |last2=Eizirik |first2=E. |last3=Pecon-Slattery |first3=J. |last4=Murphy |first4=W. J. |last5=Antunes |first5=A. |last6=Teeling |first6=E. |last7=O'Brien |first7=S. J. |name-list-style=amp |title=The Late Miocene Radiation of Modern Felidae: A Genetic Assessment |year=2006 |doi=10.1126/science.1122277 |journal=Science |volume=311 |issue=5757 |pages=73–77 |pmid=16400146 |bibcode=2006Sci...311...73J |s2cid=41672825 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1230866}}</ref>

==Characteristics==
The marbled cat is similar in size to a [[domestic cat]], but has rounded ears and a very long tail that is as long as the cat's head and body. The ground colour of its long fur varies from brownish-grey to ochreous brown above and greyish to buff below. It is patterned with black stripes on the short and round head, on the neck and back. On the tail, limbs and underbelly it has solid spots. On the flanks it has irregular dark-edged blotches that fuse to dark areas and look like a 'marbled' pattern. Its paws are webbed between the digits and are completely sheathed.<ref name=pocock1939>{{cite book |author=Pocock, R. I. |year=1939 |chapter= Genus ''Pardofelis'' Severtzow |title=The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Mammalia – Volume 1 |location=London |publisher=Taylor and Francis |pages=253−258 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/PocockMammalia1/pocock1#page/n323/mode/2up}}</ref>
Its coat is thick and soft. Spots on the forehead and crown merge into narrow longitudinal stripes on the neck, and irregular stripes on the back. The legs and underparts are patterned with black dots, and the tail is marked with black spots proximally and rings distally. It has large feet and unusually large [[canine tooth|canine teeth]], resembling those of the big cats, although these appear to be the result of [[parallel evolution]]. Marbled cats range from {{convert|45|to|62|cm|in|abbr=on}} in head-body length with a {{convert|35|to|55|cm|in|abbr=on}} long and thickly furred tail that indicates the cat's adaptation to an [[arboreal]] lifestyle, where the tail is used as a counterbalance. Recorded weights vary between {{convert|2|and|5|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.<ref name=WCoW>{{cite book |author=Sunquist, M. |author2=Sunquist, F. |name-list-style=amp |year=2002 |chapter=Marbled cat ''Pardofelis marmorata'' (Martin 1837) |title=Wild Cats of the World |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |pages=373–376 |isbn=978-0-226-77999-7 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/wildcatsofworld00sunq/page/373}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
[[File:Pardofelis marmorata 300280177.jpg|thumb|A marbled cat in Sabah]]
The marbled cat occurs along the eastern [[Himalaya]]n foothills and in tropical [[Indomalaya]] eastward into southwest [[China]], and on the islands of [[Sumatra]] and [[Borneo]]. It is primarily associated with moist and mixed [[Deciduous forest|deciduous]]-[[Evergreen forest|evergreen]] [[tropical forest]]s. Its distribution in [[India]] is confined to the north-eastern forests.<ref name=iucn/>

In eastern [[Nepal]], a marbled cat was recorded for the first time in January 2018, outside a protected area in the [[Kangchenjunga]] landscape at an altitude of {{cvt|2750|m}}.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lama |first1=S. T. |last2=Ross |first2= J. G. |last3=Bista |first3=D. |last4=Sherpa |first4=A. P. |last5=Regmi |first5=G. R. |last6=Suwal |first6=M. K.|last7=Sherpa |first7=P. |last8=Weerman |first8=J. |last9=Lama |first9=S. S. |last10=Thapa |first10=M. |last11=Poudyal |first11=L. P. |year=2019 |title=First photographic record of marbled cat ''Pardofelis marmorata'' Martin, 1837 (Mammalia, Carnivora, Felidae) in Nepal |journal=Nature Conservation |volume=32 |pages=19−34 |doi=10.3897/natureconservation.32.29740|doi-access=free |hdl=10182/10670 |hdl-access=free}}</ref>

In [[northeast India]], marbled cats were recorded in [[Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary]], [[Dampa Tiger Reserve|Dampa]] and [[Pakke Tiger Reserve]]s, [[Balpakram]]-[[Baghmara, India|Baghmara]] landscape and Singchung-Bugun Village Community Reserve in [[Arunachal Pradesh]] between January 2013 and March 2018.<ref name=Mukherjee_2019>{{cite journal |last1=Mukherjee |first1=S. |last2=Singh |first2=P. |last3=Silva |first3=A. |last4=Ri |first4=C. |last5=Kakati |first5=K. |last6=Borah |first6=B. |last7=Tapi |first7=T. |last8=Kadur |first8=S. |last9=Choudhary |first9=P. |last10=Srikant |first10=S. |last11=Nadig |first11=S. |last12=Navya |first12=R. |last13=Björklund |first13=R. |last14=Ramakrishnan |first14=U. |year=2019 |title=Activity patterns of the small and medium felid (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae) guild in northeastern India |journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa |volume= 11 |issue=4 |pages=13432−13447 |doi=10.11609/jott.4662.11.4.13432-13447 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

In [[Bhutan]], it has been recorded in [[Royal Manas National Park]], and in [[broadleaved forest|broadleaved]] and mixed [[conifer forest]]s at elevations up to {{cvt|3810|m}} in [[Jigme Dorji National Park]] and [[Wangchuck Centennial National Park]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Tempa, T. |author2=Hebblewhite, M. |author3=Mills, L.S. |author4=Wangchuk, T.R. |author5=Norbu, N. |author6=Wangchuk, T. |author7=Nidup, T. |author8=Dhendup, P. |author9=Wangchuk, D. |author10=Wangdi, Y. |author11=Dorji, T. |name-list-style=amp |year=2013 |title=Royal Manas National Park: A hotspot for wild felids, Bhutan |journal= Oryx |volume=47 |issue=2 |pages=207–210 |doi=10.1017/s0030605312001317|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Thinley |first1=P. |last2=Morreale |first2=S.J. |last3=Curtis |first3=P.D. |last4=Lassoie |first4=J.P. |last5=Dorji |first5=T. |last6=Leki |last7=Phuntsho |first7=S. |last8=Dorji |first8=N. |name-list-style=amp |year=2015 |title=Diversity, occupancy, and spatio-temporal occurrences of mammalian predators in Bhutan's Jigme Dorji National Park |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283015579 |journal=Bhutan Journal of Natural Resources & Development |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=19–27}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Dhendup, T. |year=2016 |title=Notes on the occurrence of Marbled Cats at high altitudes in Bhutan |journal=NeBIO |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=35–37|url=http://www.uwice.gov.bt/admin_uwice/publications/publication_files/Research-Articles/2016/UWICERA-NOOMCAHAIB.pdf}}</ref>

In [[Thailand]], it was recorded in a hill [[evergreen forest|evergreen]] [[bamboo]] mixed forest in [[Phu Khieu Wildlife Sanctuary]].<ref name=Grassman>{{cite journal |last1=Grassman, L. I. Jr. |last2=Tewes, M. E. |year=2000 |title=Marbled cat in northeastern Thailand |journal=Cat News |volume=33 |page=24}}</ref>

In [[Borneo]], it has also been recorded in [[peat swamp forest]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cheyne, S. M. |last2=Macdonald, D. W. |year=2010 |title=Marbled cat in Sabangau peat-swamp forest, Indonesian Borneo |journal=Cat News |volume=52 |page=11 |url=http://www.outrop.com/uploads/7/2/4/9/7249041/cheyne__macdonald_2010_marbled_cat_news.pdf |access-date=2017-12-04 |archive-date=2020-08-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803212308/http://www.outrop.com/uploads/7/2/4/9/7249041/cheyne__macdonald_2010_marbled_cat_news.pdf }}</ref>
The population size of the marbled cat is not well understood. Few records were obtained during camera-trapping surveys throughout much of its range. In three areas in [[Sabah]], the population density was estimated at 7.1 to 19.6 individuals per {{cvt|100|km2}}, an estimate that may be higher than elsewhere in the cat's range.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hearn|first1=A. J. |last2=Ross|first2=J. |last3=Bernard |first3=H. |last4=Bakar |first4=S. A. |last5=Hunter|first5=Luke T. B.|last6=Macdonald|first6=D. W. |year=2016 |title=The First Estimates of Marbled Cat ''Pardofelis marmorata'' Population Density from Bornean Primary and Selectively Logged Forest |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=11 |issue=3 |article-number=e0151046 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0151046 |pmc=4805203 |pmid=27007219|bibcode=2016PLoSO..1151046H |doi-access=free}}</ref>
In [[Kalimantan]], marbled cats were recorded in mixed [[swamp forest]] and tall interior forest at altitudes below {{convert|20|m|ft|abbr=on}} in the vicinity of [[Sabangau National Park]] between 2008 and 2018.<ref name=Jeffers_al2019>{{cite journal |last1=Jeffers, K. A. |last2=Adul |last3=Cheyne |first3=S. M. |year=2019 |title=Small cat surveys: 10 years of data from Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo |journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=13478–13491 |doi=10.11609/jott.4466.11.4.13478-13491 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

== Behaviour and ecology ==
Marbled cats recorded in northeastern India and Kalimantan on Borneo were active by day.<ref name=Mukherjee_2019/><ref name=Jeffers_al2019/>

The first-ever [[Radio telemetry|radio-tracked]] marbled cat had an overall home range of {{cvt|5.8|km2}} at an elevation of {{cvt|1000|to|1200|m}} and was active primarily during [[nocturnal]] and [[crepuscular]] times.<ref name=Grassman/>
Marbled cats recorded in northeast India were active during the day with activity peaks around noon.<ref name=Mukherjee_2019/>

Forest canopies probably provide the marbled cat with much of its prey: birds, [[squirrel]]s and other [[rodent]]s, and reptiles.<ref name=WCoW/> In the [[Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park]], a marbled cat was observed in a dense forest patch in an area also used by [[siamang]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Morino |first1=L. |year=2009 |title=Observation of a wild marbled cat in Sumatra |journal=Cat News |issue=50 |page=20}}</ref> In Thailand, one individual has been observed in Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary preying on a [[Phayre's leaf monkey]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Borries, C. |author2=Primeau, Z. M. |author3=Ossi-Lupo, K. |author4=Dtubpraserit, S. |author5=Koenig, A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2014 |title=Possible predation attempt by a marbled cat on a juvenile Phayre's leaf monkey |journal=Raffles Bulletin of Zoology |issue=62 |pages=561–565 |url=https://archive.org/details/raffles-bulletin-zoology-62-561-565}}</ref>

A few marbled cats have been bred in captivity, with [[gestation]] estimated to be 66 to 82 days. In the few recorded instances, two kittens were born in each litter, and weighed from {{cvt|61|to|85|g}}. Their eyes open at around 12 days, and the kittens begin to take solid food at two months, around the time that they begin actively climbing. Marbled cats reach sexual maturity at 21 or 22 months of age, and have lived for up to 12 years in captivity.<ref name=WCoW/>

== Threats ==
The primary threat to the marbled cat is loss and degradation of forest as it depends on large tracts of intact forest.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hendry |first1=A. |last2=Amir |first2= Z. |last3= Decoeur|first3=H.|last4= Mendes|first4=C. P. |last5=Moore |first5=J. H |last6=Sovie |first6=A. |last7=Luskin |first7=M. S. |date=January 2023 |title=Marbled cats in Southeast Asia: Are diurnal and semi-arboreal felids at greater risk from human disturbances? |journal=Ecosphere |volume=14|issue=1 |article-number=e4338 |doi=10.1002/ecs2.4338|doi-access=free |bibcode=2023Ecosp..14E4338H }}</ref>
Forest loss is continuing across its range due to logging and expansion of human settlements and agriculture.<ref name=iucn />
Indiscriminate [[snaring]] is prevalent throughout much of its range, and also likely poses a major threat. It is valued for its skin, meat, and bones, but infrequently observed in the [[Wildlife trade#In Asia|illegal Asian wildlife trade]].<ref name=iucn />
During a survey in the [[Lower Subansiri District]] of [[Arunachal Pradesh]], a marbled cat was encountered that had been killed by a local hunter for a festival celebrated by the indigenous [[Apatani people]] in March and April every year. The dead cat was used in a ceremony, and its blood was sacrificed to the deity for goodwill of their family and for ensuring a good harvest, protection from wildlife, disease and pest.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Selvan |first1=K. M. |last2=Gopi |first2=G. V. |last3=Habib |first3=B. |last4=Lyngdoh |first4=S. |year=2013 |title=Hunting record of endangered Marbled Cat ''Pardofelis marmorata'' in the Ziro Valley of Lower Subansiri, Arunachal Pradesh, India |journal=Journal of Threatened Taxa |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=3583–3584 |doi=10.11609/JoTT.o3208.100 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

==Conservation==
The marbled cat is included in [[CITES Appendix I]], and hunting it is prohibited in [[Bangladesh]], [[Cambodia]], [[China]], [[Indonesia]], [[Malaysia]], [[Myanmar]], [[Nepal]] and [[Thailand]]. Hunting is regulated in [[Laos]] and [[Singapore]].<ref name=iucn/> In India, it is protected under Schedule I of the [[Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Ministry of Law and Justice |year=2022 |title=The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022 |journal=The Gazette of India Extraordinary, Part II, Section 1 |place=New Delhi |url=https://prsindia.org/files/bills_acts/acts_parliament/2022/The%20Wild%20Life%20(Protection)%20Amendment%20Act,%202022.pdf}}</ref>

== Taxonomy ==
''Felis marmorata'' was the [[scientific name]] proposed by [[William Charles Linnaeus Martin]] in 1836 for a skin of a male marbled cat from Java or Sumatra.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Martin |first1=W. C. |year=1836 |title=Description of a new species of ''Felis'' |journal=Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London |volume=IV |issue=XLVII |pages=107–108 |url=https://archive.org/stream/lietuvostsrmoksl33liet#page/n664/mode/1up}}</ref>
''Felis longicaudata'' proposed by [[Henri Marie Ducrotay de Blainville]] in 1843 was a [[zoological specimen]] from India or [[Cochinchina]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blainville |first1=H. M. D. |year=1843 |title=Ostéographie ou description iconographique comparée du squelette et du système dentaire des cinques classes d'animaux vertébrés récents et fossils pour servir de base a la zoologie et la géologie. Volume 2: Mammifères. Carnassiers |location=Paris |publisher=Arthus Bertrand |pages=1–196 |chapter=Os du squelette des Felis |chapter-url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6220591s/f744}}</ref>
''Felis charltoni'' proposed by [[John Edward Gray]] in 1846 was a specimen from [[Darjeeling]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gray |first1=J. E. |year=1846 |title=New species of Mammalia |journal=The Annals and Magazine of Natural History; Zoology, Botany, and Geology |volume=18 |issue= 118|pages=211−212 |url=https://archive.org/details/annalsmagazineof18lond/page/211|doi=10.1080/037454809494412 }}</ref>
The [[Generic name (biology)|generic name]] ''Pardofelis'' was proposed by [[Nikolai Severtzov]] in 1858.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Severtzow |first1=M. N. |year=1858 |title=Notice sur la classification multisériale des Carnivores, spécialement des Félidés, et les études de zoologie générale qui s'y rattachent |journal=Revue et Magasin de Zoologie Pure et Appliquée |volume=X |pages=385–396 |url=https://archive.org/stream/revueetmagasinde10soci#page/386/mode/2up}}</ref>

At present, two subspecies are recognized as [[Valid name (zoology)|valid]]:<ref name=CatSG2017>{{cite journal |last1=Kitchener |first1=A. C. |last2=Breitenmoser-Würsten |first2=C. |last3=Eizirik |first3=E. |last4=Gentry |first4=A. |last5=Werdelin |first5=L. |last6=Wilting |first6=A. |last7=Yamaguchi |first7=N. |last8=Abramov |first8=A. V. |last9=Christiansen |first9=P. |last10=Driscoll |first10=C. |last11=Duckworth |first11=J. W. |last12=Johnson |first12=W. |last13=Luo |first13=S.-J. |last14=Meijaard |first14=E. |last15=O'Donoghue |first15=P. |last16=Sanderson |first16=J. |last17=Seymour |first17=K. |last18=Bruford |first18=M. |last19=Groves |first19=C. |last20=Hoffmann |first20=M. |last21=Nowell |first21=K. |last22=Timmons |first22=Z. |last23=Tobe |first23=S. |date=2017 |title=A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group |journal=Cat News |issue=Special Issue 11 |pages=34−35 |url=https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/32616/A_revised_Felidae_Taxonomy_CatNews.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y}}</ref>
*''P. marmorata marmorata'' (Martin, 1836) – from the [[Malay Peninsula]] to [[Sumatra]] and [[Borneo]]
*''P. marmorata longicaudata'' (Blainville, 1843) – from [[Nepal]] to north of the [[Isthmus of Kra]]

=== Phylogeny ===
The marbled cat was once considered to belong to the [[Pantherinae|pantherine]] lineage of cats.<ref name=Hemmer>{{cite journal |author=Hemmer, H. |year=1978 |title=The evolutionary systematics of living Felidae: Present status and current problems |journal=Carnivore |volume=1 |pages=71–79}}</ref> But
results of a [[phylogenetic]] analysis indicate that it forms an [[Lineage (evolution)|evolutionary lineage]] with the [[Asian golden cat]] (''Catopuma temminckii'') and the [[bay cat]] (''C. badia'') that [[Genetic divergence|genetically diverged]] about {{mya|12.77|7.36}}. The marbled cat diverged from this lineage about {{mya|8.42|4.27}}.<ref name=Johnson_al2006/><ref name=Werdelin_al2010>{{cite book |last1=Werdelin |first1=L. |last2=Yamaguchi |first2=N. |last3=Johnson |first3=W. E. |last4=O'Brien |first4=S. J. |year=2010 |chapter=Phylogeny and evolution of cats (Felidae) |pages=59–82 |chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266755142 |editor1-last=Macdonald |editor1-first=D. W. |editor2-last=Loveridge |editor2-first=A. J. |title=Biology and Conservation of Wild Felids |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=978-0-19-923445-5}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikispecies|Pardofelis marmorata}}
{{Commons category|Pardofelis marmorata}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.catsg.org/index.php?id=122 |website=IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group |title=Marbled cat ''Pardofelis marmorata'' |access-date=2014-12-16 |archive-date=2017-12-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212052106/http://www.catsg.org/index.php?id=122 }}

{{Carnivora|Fe.}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q80191}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:marbled cat}}
[[Category:Pardofelis]]
[[Category:Mammals of Bhutan]]
[[Category:Mammals of Indonesia]]
[[Category:Mammals of Thailand]]
[[Category:Mammals of Cambodia]]
[[Category:Mammals of Vietnam]]
[[Category:Mammals of Laos]]
[[Category:Fauna of Yunnan]]
[[Category:Carnivorans of Malaysia]]
[[Category:Fauna of Eastern Himalaya]]
[[Category:Fauna of Southeast Asia]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1837]]
[[Category:Taxa named by William Charles Linnaeus Martin]]
[[Category:Carnivorans of Borneo]]

Marbled cat - Revision history

VanBoas1588 at 12:57, 23 November 2025