Serval

Serval (Leptailurus serval)

Phylum — chordata
Class — mammalia
Order — сarnivora
Family — felidae

Genus - leptailurus

Appearance

The serval is a slender, medium-sized cat; it stands 54 to 62 cm (21–24 in) at the shoulder and weighs 8 to 18 kg (18–40 lb), but females tend to be lighter. The head-and-body length is typically between 67 and 100 cm (26–39 in). Males tend to be sturdier than females. Prominent characteristics include the small head, large ears, spotted and striped coat, long legs and a black-tipped tail that is around 30 cm (12 in) long.

The coat is basically golden-yellow and extensively marked with black spots and stripes. The spots show great variation in size. Facial features include the brownish or greenish eyes, white whiskers, ears as large as those of a domestic cat and black on the back with a white horizontal band in the middle, whitish chin, and spots and streaks on the cheeks and the forehead. Three to four black stripes run from the back of the head onto the shoulders, and then break into rows of spots. The white underbelly has dense and fluffy basal fur, and the soft guard hairs are 5–10 cm (2–4 in) long. Guard hairs are up to 3 cm (1 ¹⁄₄ in) long on the neck, back and the flanks, and are merely 1 cm (¹⁄₂ in) long on the face. The closely set ears are black on the back with a horizontal white band; the ears can rotate up to 180 degrees independently of each other. 

Habitat

In North Africa, the serval is known only from Morocco and has been reintroduced in Tunisia, but is feared to be extinct in Algeria. It inhabits semi-arid areas and cork oak forests close to the Mediterranean Sea, but avoids rainforests and arid areas. It occurs in the Sahel, and is widespread in Southern Africa. It inhabits grasslands, moorlands and bamboo thickets at high altitudes up to 3,800 m (12,500 ft) on Mount Kilimanjaro. It prefers areas close to water bodies such aswetland and savanna, which provide cover such as reeds and tall grasses.   

Behaviour

The serval is active in the day as well as at night; activity might peak in early morning, around twilight and at midnight. Servals might be active for a longer time on cool or rainy days. During the hot midday, they rest or groom themselves in the shade of bushes and grasses. Servals remain cautious of their vicinity, though they may be less alert when no large carnivores or prey animals are around. Servals walk as much as 2 to 4 kilometres (1 ¹⁄₄ to 2 ¹⁄₂ miles) every night. Servals will often use special trails to reach certain hunting areas. A solitary animal, there is little social interaction among servals except in the mating season, when pairs of opposite sexes may stay together. The only long-lasting bond appears to be of the mother and her cubs, which leave their mother only when they are a year old.

Both males and females establish home ranges, and are most active only in certain regions within them. The area of these ranges can vary from 10 to 32 square kilometres (4 to 12 square miles); prey density, availability of cover and human interference could be significant factors in determining their size. Home ranges might overlap extensively, but occupants show minimal interaction. Aggressive encounters are rare, as servals appear to mutually avoid one another rather than fight and defend their ranges. Agonistic behaviour involves vertical movement of the head (contrary to the horizontal movement observed in other cats), raising the hair and the tail, displaying the teeth and the white band on the ears, and yowling. Individuals mark their ranges and preferred paths by spraying urine on nearby vegetation, dropping scats along the way, and rubbing their mouth on grasses or the ground while releasing saliva. Servals tend to be sedentary, shifting only a few kilometres away even if they leave their range.

The serval is vulnerable to hyaenas and wild dogs. It will seek cover to escape their view, and, if the predator is very close, immediately flee in long leaps, changing its direction frequently and with the tail raised. The serval is an efficient, though not frequent, climber; an individual was observed to have climbed a tree to a height of more than 9 metres (30 feet) to escape dogs. Like many cats, the serval is able to purr; it also has a high-pitched chirp, and can hiss, cackle, growl, grunt and meow.

Diet

The serval is a carnivore that preys on rodents, particularly vlei rats, small birds, frogs, insects and reptiles, and also feeds on grass that can facilitate digestion or act as an emetic. Up to 90% of the preyed animals weigh less than 200 g (7 oz); occasionally it also hunts larger prey such as duikers, hares, flamingoes and young antelopes. The percentage of rodents in the diet has been estimated at 80-97%. Apart from vlei rats, other rodents recorded frequently in the diet include the African grass rat, African pygmy mouse and multimammate mice.

Servals locate prey by their strong sense of hearing. To kill small prey, the serval will slowly stalk it, then pounce on it with the forefeet directed toward the chest, and finally land on it with its forelegs outstretched. The prey, receiving a blow from one or both of the serval's forepaws, is incapacitated, and the serval gives it a bite on the head or the neck and immediately swallows it. Snakes are dealt more blows and even bites, and may be consumed even as they are moving. Larger prey, such as larger birds, are killed by a sprint followed by a leap to catch them as they are trying to flee, and are eaten slowly. Servals have been observed caching large kills to be consumed later by concealing them in dead leaves and grasses. Servals typically get rid of the internal organs of rodents while eating, and pluck feathers from birds before consuming them. During a leap, a serval can reach more than 2 m (6 ft 7 in) above the ground and cover a horizontal distance of up to 3.6 m (11 ft 10 in). Servals appear to be efficient hunters; a study in Ngorongoro showed that servals were successful in half of their hunting attempts, regardless of the time of hunting, and a mother serval was found to have a success rate of 62%.

Reproduction

Both sexes become sexually mature when they are one to two years old. Oestrus in females lasts one to four days; it typically occurs once or twice a year, though it can occur three or four times a year if the mother loses her litters. Observations of captive servals suggest that when a female enters oestrus, the rate of urine-marking increases in her as well as the males in her vicinity. Zoologist Jonathan Kingdon described the behaviour of a female serval in oestrus in his 1997 book East African Mammals. He noted that she would roam restlessly, spray urine frequently holding her vibrating tail in a vertical manner, rub her head near the place she has marked, salivate continuously, give out sharp and short "miaow"s that can be heard for quite a distance, and rub her mouth and cheeks against the face of an approaching male. The time when mating takes place varies geographically; births peak in winter in Botswana, and toward the end of the dry season in the Ngorongoro Crater.

Gestation lasts for two to three months, following which a litter of one to four kittens is born. Blind at birth, newborn weigh nearly 250 g (9 oz) and have soft, woolly hair (greyer than in adults) and unclear markings. The eyes open after nine to thirteen days. Weaning begins a month after birth; the mother brings small kills to her kittens and calls out to them as she approaches the "den". The mother shifts her kittens one by one to a more secure place. Kittens eventually start accompanying their mother to hunts. At around six months, they begin to hunt themselves; they leave their mother at about 12 months of age. They may reach sexual maturity from 12 to 25 months of age.

In captivity

Life expectancy is about 10 years in the wild, and up to 20 years in captivity.

It is easy to take care of servals at home. It is not required to have a cage for an animal taken from a nursery. It is also easy to feed them. Their main food is a raw meat with bones – beef or poltry – from 0,5 up to 1,3 kilos a day. It is necessary to give vitamins with calcium additions. This cat is easily to be taught to use a toilet and the animal is very clean. The only habit it can`t give up is marking the territory. It does it constantly and the smell is so sharp that is why the cats are recommended to be sterilized or castrated.

There are several main rules to be followed while raising a little serval which give an opportunity to have an ideal pet. While playing with a kitten it is prohibited to tease it stretching a hand or a foot otherwise it will perceive them as toys and will scratch. It is better to use toys for cats and dogs. If a playing serval starts biting and scratching it is necessary to stop playing or just leave it alone. After several lessons the serval will understand it is not worth biting or scratching, otherwise it will be able to lose a playmate. It is not allowed to shout at the animals or beat them. Strict prohibition supported by a gun shot will form a reflex. Lack of communication influences servals effectively, they understand that they do something wrong and stop doing mistakes.