Animal Fact Sheet
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Serval
Leptailurus serval
What does it look
like?
Servals are blessed with fine markings, distinct black spots on
orange-brown fur, which, unfortunately, make them prime targets
for poachers. Marking appear darker (melanistic) on servals living
in moist climates above 10,000 feet.
- In proportion to their bodies, servals have the longest legs
in the cat family, enabling them to peer over tall vegetation
to find prey
- These cats also depend on their highly-tuned hearing apparatus
- Large, oval ears, atop their slight bodies, helps these agile,
medium-sized cats survive
- Servals reach between 41 to 61 inches in length, and weigh from
15 to 30 pounds
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| Where
in the world?
These solitary hunters move with extreme care along water courses
in grasslands, woodlands and thickets throughout Africa.
What are some behaviors?
Servals hunt in the early morning and late afternoon hours. During
the heat of midday, they prefer to rest in abandoned aardvark burrows
or under shady bushes.
Suspecting a rodent in a patch of grass, servals
will leap to the area and hold still. Once a potential prey stirs,the
servals excellent hearing picks up the sound and their reflexes
are usually quick enough to capture it.
What about offspring?
Servals have a gestation period of about 75 days, giving birth to
a litter of one to five kittens.
What does it eat?
Although servals weigh no more than 30 pounds and are delicate in
build, they can take birds as large as 10 pounds.
Although their prey is generally confined to
small rodents and ground birds, sometimes they tackle hares, as
well as fish and lizards.
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Is it threatened
or endangered?
They are one of te most common African cats. Servals are not protected
over most of their range and are in no danger at present. The fur
trade is not a major threat. |
