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ISSN 1027-2992 I Special Issue I N° 10 | Autumn 2016 CatsCAT in news 02

CATnews is the newsletter of the Specialist Group, a component Editors: Christine & Urs Breitenmoser of the Survival Commission SSC of the International Union Co-chairs IUCN/SSC for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It is published twice a year, and is Cat Specialist Group ­available to members and the Friends of the Cat Group. KORA, Thunstrasse 31, 3074 Muri, Switzerland For joining the Friends of the Cat Group please contact Tel ++41(31) 951 90 20 Christine Breitenmoser at [email protected] Fax ++41(31) 951 90 40 Original contributions and short notes about wild are welcome Send contributions and observations to [email protected].

Guidelines for authors are available at www.catsg.org/catnews Cover Photo: From top left to bottom right: (K. Rudloff) This Special Issue of CATnews has been produced with support (P. Meier) from the Wild Cat Club and Zoo Leipzig. Asiatic (ICS/DoE/CACP/ ) Design: barbara surber, werk’sdesign gmbh (M. Eslami Dehkordi) Layout: Christine Breitenmoser & Tabea Lanz Eurasian (F. Heidari) Print: Stämpfli Publikationen AG, Bern, Switzerland Pallas’s cat (F. Esfandiari) Persian (S. B. Mousavi) ISSN 1027-2992 © IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group Asiatic (S. B. Mousavi) (M. R. Besmeli) (B. Farahanchi)

The designation of the geographical entities in this publication, and the representation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, , or area, or its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

CATnews Special Issue 10 Autumn 2016 Farhadinia et al.

MOHAMMAD S. FARHADINIA1, 2*, EHSAN M. MOQANAKI1 AND MOHAMMAD ALI ADIBI3,4 firmed records of presence obtained before 2000; C1: confirmed records with physical Baseline information and evidences (e.g. photos, videos, carcasses, museum specimens with identified origins); status assessment of the Pal- C2: reliable field observations verified by ei- ther us or a trained person. Unlike Moqanaki las’s cat in Iran et al. (2010), we did not find the C3 category applicable to our Pallas’s cat records, be- Iran is most likely the western boundary of the Pallas’s cat’s, or manul Otocolobus cause we felt that the remaining unconfirmed manul global distribution range. The Pallas’s cat is amongst the least-studied fe- records are too ambiguous given our criteria. lids in Iran and basic questions about its status and natural history have yet to be answered. Our review of the available information suggests significant increases in Description and the range of the species previously known from Iran. North-eastern Iran remains a Adult manuls, the species’ other popular hotspot of Pallas’s cat occurrence in the country, but there are a growing number of name, weigh 2.5-5.3 kg and the average recent confirmed records from southern slopes of Mountains, as well as the body length is approximately 55 cm (Sun- south-central provinces. Human disturbances such as mining activities and tradi- quist & Sunquist 2002, S. Ross, unpubl. tional pastoralism, particularly during summer when alpine and sub-alpine range- data). The Pallas’s cat has a heavy fur coat lands are occupied by flocks of livestock, might have adverse impact on the Pallas’s of silvery to rufous-grey and faint stripes on cat. The lack of scientific understanding of the Pallas’s cat in Iran restricts our ability the body (Fig. 1). Short-rounded ears and to conserve the species. large eyes are set on a flattened broad face. Distinctive dark stripes adorn the face and The Pallas’s cat is a short-legged small cat, Methods cheeks and the head is decorated with small approximately the same size as a domestic Our study approach was similar to the one spots. A spectacle-like pattern circles the cat, with a broad distribution through semi- described in details in Moqanaki et al. (2010). eyes. The tail is bushy and banded with nar- arid and arid steppes of Russia and In brief, we undertook a synthesis of the Pal- row stripes, with a dark tip at the end. The to the region in . las’s cat in Iran using published reports, un- coat coloration may appear darker in spring- Being considered as one of the least-studied published accounts, museum specimens, and summer (Nowell & Jackson 1996, Sunquist 38 carnivores of Iran, very little verifiable infor- extensive interviews and interrogations with & Sunquist 2002). mation is present about the natural history trained Iranian biologists, provincial wildlife We obtained 16 measurements from the and aspects of ecology of the Pallas’s cat in authorities, taxidermist, and hunters. We Iranian Pallas’s cats (Supporting Online Ma- the country. The need to identify the current updated this information during two partici- terial SOM T1). On average, Iranian speci- distribution and status of the Pallas’s cat is patory workshops facilitated by Iran Depart- mens weigh 2.4 ± SE 0.1 kg (male: 2.5 ± SE urgent in order to direct future research to un- ment of Environment DoE, University of the 0.2 (n = 8) vs. female: 2.3 ± SE 0.1 (n = 6)). derstand the species’ conservation needs. In Environment, and IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Furthermore, head and body length reaches this study, we present a review of the current Group, in , (27-29 No- 55.5 ± SE 1.1 cm with a mean tail length of state of the species’ biology and geographical vember 2011) and Sari, 25.5 ± SE 0.4 cm for Iranian Pallas’s cats. distribution range in Iran as recorded in the (12-14 May 2012). Following our earlier work, The taxonomic status of the Pallas’s cat was last 25 years, as comprehensive as possible, we filtered and refined the unpublished data unclear until very recently. At first, on the and discuss potential threats in the Iranian based on their reliability and categorised basis of the coat appearance, Peter Simon range of the Pallas’s cat. them into three groups of: ‘historical’: con- Pallas postulated that the manul is a likely ancestor of Persian domestic cat breeds (Nowell & Jackson 1996). Later authors clas- sified the species as Lynx, , and subse- quently in its own . Today, Otocolobus is believed to be a monotypic genus. Novel molecular studies have suggested a very close phylogenetic relationship with the lineage (Johnson et al. 2006). Three are proposed to date: O. m. manul (Pallas 1776) in Russia, and northern China; O. m. nigripectus (Hodgson 1842) on the Tibetan Plateau and probably ; and O. m. ferrugineus (Ognev 1928) from to Iran. While the eastern subspecies is the typical greyish morph, the western population shows a variably rufes- Fig. 1. A Pallas’s cat photo-trapped in Salouk National Park, , in cent coat colour (Nowell & Jackson 1996; fall 2015 (Photo M. S. Farhadinia/WildCRU/ICS/Panthera). see Figs. 1-3).

CATnews Special Issue 10 Autumn 2016 Pallas‘s cat

Distribution Iran is likely the western boundary of the Otocolobus manul global distribution range of the Pallas’s cat. The species is amongst the least studied Names: IUCN Red List: felids in Iran and basic questions about its Gorbe-ye-Palas Near Threatened (2016) status and natural history have yet to be Pallas’s cat (manul) CITES: answered. In this study we gathered 84 new Appendix II occurrence records of the Pallas’s cat in Iran Head and body length: (C1 and C2; see Contemporary records), of 48-60 cm Country Red List: which 72.6% (n = 61) were hard evidence Tail length: N/A (C1) and the remaining reliable sightings 23-29 cm Iran environmental verified in this study (C2). Our data signifi- Weight: conservation laws & cantly increases the range of the species 1.5-3.7 kg regulations: previously known from Iran (Fig. 4). North- Category II (Near Threat- eastern Iran is a hotspot of Pallas’s cat oc- Global Population: ened and protected) currence in the country. More recent records Unknown also originated from the south-central prov- Iranian Population: Photo F. Esfandiari inces (Fig. 4). The Pallas’s cat has not been Unknown reported in south-eastern Iran, though there are old anecdotal reports from neighbouring Distribution in Iran: Pakistani Baluchistan (Pocock 1939, Roberts Mainly north-east and north 1997). Therefore, our data indicate that as outside the Caspian region well as containing its western global range with scattered records for boundary, the Pallas’s cat reaches also its the rest of the country southernmost known limit in Iran (30° N).

Historical records (up to 2000) The manul presence in Iran was confirmed Mouteh WR in in the Wild Cat Furthermore, the has been confirmed 39 from an undated specimen reportedly ob- Action Plan (M. T. Moeinian, pers. comm. from vicinity of a number of urbanised areas, tained in “Meched” (), Razavi Kho- cited in Nowell & Jackson 1996). such as Chenaran, Torghabeh, Jajarm and rasan, by Sir P. R. Sykes (now in possession Esfarayen. Camera trap deployed for leopard of the Natural History Museum of London; Contemporary records: north-eastern Iran Panthera pardus in Salouk, Sarigol and A. C. Kitchener, pers. comm.). Together with (Razavi, North, and South Khorasan Provinces) Tandoureh NPs, North Khorasan Province, other specimens found from neighbouring North-eastern provinces hold the majority have photo-captured the Pallas’s cat in mul- countries, this specimen was a basis for of recent confirmed records of the Pallas’s tiple occasions (M. S. Farhadinia, unpubl. Pocock (1939) to conclude that the Pallas’s cat presence in Iran, including several re- data; Fig. 1). cat range in Iran is “northern Persian”. No serves: Salouk and Sarigol National Parks According to Rustamov & Sopyev (1994), the reports of the Pallas’s cat were made over NP, Shaskouh Protected Area PA, as well as manul also exists in southern , the three decades following this record (Lay Heidari WR, Tandoureh NP, Gharchegheh PA, neighboring north-eastern Iran. Pocock 1967). Nonetheless, Misonne (1959) specu- Helali PA, and southward to Dorouneh PA. (1939) also reported a specimen from east- lated about the species presence in north- west and north-east Iran based on the manul occurrence in Ararat, the , and Turkmenistan in the vicinity of the Iranian border, respectively. Lay (1967) purchased a skin of unknown origin from a fur dealer (now in possession of Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago). Jamsheed (1976) and Firouz (1999) presented photos of different individuals both from Khosh Yeilagh Wildlife Refuge WR, . Etemad (1985) provided undated records from north-eastern Iran, including Sarakhs, in the vicinity of the Tajan River, the Iranian area bordering the Kopet Dagh Mountains, and adjacent to Nakhchivan and Aras River in northwest Iran (Fig. 4). There have also Fig. 2. Carcass of an erytristic morph of the Pallas’s cat in Bafq, Province, in Janu- been unconfirmed reports of the felid from ary 2008 (Photo Yazd DoE).

Cats in Iran Farhadinia et al.

ern Ashkabad, close to the Iranian border in Contemporary records: Northwestern Iran monly seen in parts of the Pallas’s cat high- Turkmenistan. However, more recent surveys or the Iranian Caucasus (Gilan, , East land habitats in Iran. by Lukarevsky (2001) did not reveal new hard and West Azarbayjan Provinces) Despite this species has been reported from evidences from this region. The only verifi- Northwestern Iran has been historically con- above 5,000 m in Tibetan Plateau, China ( able record of the Pallas’s cat we found from sidered within the species range, and this & Dorji 2007) and Tso Lhamo Plateau, eastern Iran was a photo of an individual has been confirmed by additional recent (Chanchani 2008), the Iranian records are lim- from Qaen County, reports (Aghili et al. 2008). In north-western ited to altitudes of 2,500 m. The majority of (A. Khajavi, pers. comm.). In neighboring Iran, the Pallas’s cat has been rarely record- Iranian records of Pallas’s cat have originated , the manul has been predomi- ed in the Caucasus, including south Armenia from arid grassland steppes and rocky moun- nantly recorded from the eastern part of the and south (Ognev 1935, Heptner tains. But a growing number of confirmed country, far from the Iran-Afghan border zone & Sludskii 1972, Alekperov 1989, Aghili et sightings suggest the species persistence (Habibi 2003). al. 2008). All of these sightings have been on temperate regions as well, such as the on the northern side of the Araz (or Aras) southern slopes of Alborz Mountains. The Contemporary records: central and south- Valley that forms the border with Iran. Trap- presence of manul has also been confirmed central Iran (, Markazi, Semnan, Esfa- ping of an adult female in Azar-Shahr, East in the mountains of , a primar- han, Yazd, Fars, and Provinces) Azarbayjan, in June 2008 finally confirmed ily region (Fig. 2). Such a wide range Previous hard evidences from this region the presence of the Pallas’s cat in the Iranian of habitat features from arid mountains to were restricted to Khosh Yeilagh WR in Caucasus (Aghili et al. 2008). temperate regions suggest the adaptability Semnan Province (Fig. 3; Ziaie 2008). Since of Pallas’s cats. the 2000s more records from the south- Habitat central provinces have become available. The Pallas’s cat is most often sighted in stony Ecology and behaviour In Semnan Province, several individuals alpine steppes and upland hilly areas, but is As a solitary cat, both sexes maintain large have recently been captured westwards generally absent from lowland sandy desert home ranges with intra- and inter-sexual along the Alborz Mountains, Khonar, Miami basins. It seems that rocky and talus out- overlap for males. In Mongolia, Ross et al. Mountain, vicinity of Shahmirzad, Seydoua crops are predominantly preferred, and the (2012) reported average male and female NP and Damghan County (Fig. 4). In north- geographical range of the Pallas’s cat ends territories of 98.8 km2 (21-207 km2) and 23.1 central Iran in mid-Alborz, the presence of where the steppes meet forests (Heptner & km2 (7.4-125.2 km2), respectively. Activity 40 the Pallas’s cat has been confirmed in Khojir Sludskii 1972). Semi desert landscapes of period in the Pallas’s cat is predominantly NP (Chalani et al. 2008) and Firouzkouh high- Central Asia are also inhabited by the spe- crepuscular (Ross 2009). However, Ross et al. lands, . Toward the west, cies (Munkhtsog et al. 2004). Although up- (2010b) judged them to be mainly crepuscular we have also observed a stuffed specimen land habitats are preferred, deep snow is or diurnal hunters, based on temporal pattern from , , in a private said to be a limiting factor (Sunquist & Sun- of their main prey activity. Breeding is highly collection. In addition to the mountainous quist 2002). Availability of suitable den sites seasonal and daylight dependent (Brown et northern territories, unexpected reports of is critical for the conservation of the species al. 2002). After a gestation period of 66 to the manul have been recently collected as (Ross et al. 2012). Evidence suggests that 75 days birth peaks in March-May, and two far south as Semirom, Faridan and Karkas den sites are selected in areas with higher to, rarely, 8 kittens are born (Heptner & Slud- PA (Esfahan Province), Mehriz, Taft and Bafq proportions of rocky and ravine habitats in skii 1972, Ross 2009). In Iran, two litters of (Yazd Province; Fig. 2), Rafsanjan, Sirjan, the surroundings (Ross et al. 2010a). Den three and four cubs (aging less than 2 weeks Shahr-e Babak and Bidou’eeyeh WR (Ker- sites are used for feeding, mating, raising at the time of detection) have been recorded man Province) and Abadeh (; kittens and predator avoidance (Ross et al. in May and early June 2014 from Maneh-va- Joolaee et al. 2014). 2010a). (Juniperus spp.) are com- Samalqan County, North Khorasan Province, and vicinity of Tandoureh NP (Fig. 5), , both in north-eastern Iran.

Prey The Pallas’s cats feed mainly on small and lagomorphs, in particular pikas of genus Ochotona. Moreover, small ground , hedgehogs, and are oc- casionally hunted. According to Heptner & Sludskii (1972), the manul’s habitat is also typified by the presence of pikas and other small rodents, which constitute the bulk of its prey. The authors found remains of pikas in 89% of scats. In Mongolia, Ross et al. (2010b) recorded the manul feeding on a broad range of prey from insects to small and Fig. 3 A Pallas‘s cat in Khosh Yeilagh WR in September 2015 (Photo M. A. Adibi). birds. Nonetheless, diurnal pikas were highly

CATnews Special Issue 10 Autumn 2016 Pallas‘s cat selected with the highest frequency of oc- currence in diet in both summer (71.1%) and winter (47.6%). There is no empirical data about the dietary composition of the Pallas’s cat in Iran. Never- theless, the majority of the known geographi- cal range of this species (i.e., north to north- east) falls within the range of Afghan pika O. rufescens and Rhombomys opimus (Harrington & Dareshuri 1976).

In captivity The Pallas’s cat has never been common within Iranian zoos and facilities. Purport- edly from Sarakh (B. Ketabi, pers. comm.), northeastern-most Iran, two individuals were previously kept in Tehran zoo which are mentioned by Lay (1967) and Etemad (1985). In 2011, a juvenile manul originated from Kashan, south-central Iran, was in Iran DoE’s Pardisan Eco-Park in Tehran for a short time Fig. 4. Current distribution information for the Pallas’s cat in Iran (1960-2015). Histori- prior to being kidnapped. Additonally, another cal records (white square): confirmed presence records before 2000, including data from manul of unknown origin and sex was in pos- literature; C1 (red dot): hard evidences, such as photos, videos and dead specimens; C2 session of Isar Zoo, Alborz Pro-vince until ear- (blue dot): soft evidences, such as reliable field observations, either verified by us or via a ly 2016 (I. Memarian, pers. comm.). Presently, trained person. to our knowledge there are two manuls kept in captivity, one male from north-eastern Iran cat died shortly after capturing by local peo- Khabr NP, Yazd Province) or leopard cub (e.g. kept in Vakilabad Zoo, Razavi Khorasan, as ple. There were also six cases of manul cap- Tandoureh NP, Razavi Khorasan Province; 41 well as another young manul kept by Esfahan turing by local people in recent years, report- Fig. 5). Recent conservation prioritization DoE, originally from Hanna area, Semirom edly released back into the wild. According to analysis based on evolutionary distinctive- County. Recently, two juvenile individuals Munkhtsog et al. (2004), human disturbance ness and globally endangered score has both kept by local offices of Iran DoE in north- may also affect Pallas’s cat home range. A given the Pallas’s cat a high priority for re- eastern Iran (Fig. 5), died after a few months considerable proportion of the species range search and conservation actions in Iran, i.e. in captivity. in Iran is inhabited by nomadic people who first ranking among Iran’s lesser cats and move seasonally, thus Pallas’s cats may have one of top ten country’s carnivore species Main threats to alter their activi-ty patterns and spatial be- (Farhadinia et al. 2016). The Pallas’s cat is currently threatened havior in avoidance of seasonally settled ar- throughout its range in Asia primarily due to eas. However, recent evidences suggest that habitat loss, hunting for the fur trade, and ver- Pallas’s cats are capable of inhabiting human- min control programs that result in depletion disturbed landscapes (Webb et al. 2014). of its prey base and direct poisoning (Nowell & Jackson 1996, Ross et al. 2015). Unlike Protection measures global concerns suggesting the fur trade as a IUCN Red List of Threatened Species con- major threat to the viability of manul popula- siders the manul’s status as “Near Threat- tions (Brown & Munkhtsog 2000), the Iranian ened” (Ross et al. 2015). In Asia, the Pal- population seems not to suffer significantly las’s cat is also included in CITES Appendix from poachers, partially because of their rarity II. Iran Hunting and Fishing Law 1967 (last and elusive habits. However, human activities revision 2015) classifies the Pallas’s cat in such as mining and traditional pastoralism, Category II, defined as fully protected near particularly during summer when alpine and threatened species. In addition, poach- sub-alpine rangelands are occupied by flocks ing will result in a fine of IRR 100,000,000 of livestock, might have adverse impact on (1 USD ≈ 35,000 Iran Rials). the Pallas’s cat (Joolaee et al. 2014). We were The recent increase in the number of cap- able to gather 19 verifiable records of the Pal- tured Pallas’s cats from different locations las’s cat mortality from Iran. In 16 cases the in Iran is of concern and necessitates Fig. 5. A Pallas‘s cat cub perceived as a cause of death was reported and the individu- awareness raising programs, particularly leopard cub and captured by a local her- als were either killed by herding (n = 7) for herders who occasionally confuse the der in Tandoureh NP in April 2014 (Photo or poached (n = 2). Furthermore, seven Pallas’s animal with small cheetah (e.g. in Bafq and A. Moharrami).

Cats in Iran Farhadinia et al.

The lack of scientific understanding of the Farhadinia M. S., Mohammadi A. R., Ashrafi S., and Natl. Sci. Found., Washington DC., USA. Pallas’s cat in Iran restricts our ability to Ashrafzadeh M. R. & Mohammadi H. 2016. 641 pp. (English translation published 1962). conserve the species. The manul is difficult Conservation prioritization of Iranian mammals Pocock R. I. 1939. The of British India, Mam- to detect in the wild and there are not many for effective management. Iranian Journal of malin, I. Primates and , 2nd edition verifiable records from Iran. Identification Natural Environment 68, 461-475. (In Persian) Taylor and Francis, London, UK. 463 pp. and conservation of the Pallas’s cat key habi- Firouz E. 1999. Wildlife of Iran. Iran University Pub- Roberts T. J. 1997. The mammals of . Ox- tats can play an important role in conserva- lishers, Tehran, Iran. 497 pp. (In Persian) ford University Press, Karachi. tion planning for the species. Therefore, we Fox J. L & Dorji T. 2007. High elevation record Ross S. 2009. Providing an ecological basis for the recommend to conduct a large-scale habitat for occurrence of the Manul or Pallas’ cat on conservation of the Pallas’s cat (Otocolobus modeling exercise to better understand its the northwestern Tibetan Plateau, China. Cat manul). Ph.D. thesis, Department of Biological potential distribution range not only within News 46, 35. Sciences, The University of Bristol, Bristol, UK. the Iranian boundary, but broader in western Habibi K. 2003. Mammals of Afghanistan. Zoo Out- Ross S., Barashkova Y., Farhadinia M. S., Appel A., Asia. Although the distribution of the Pallas’s reach Organization/ USFWS, Coimbatore, India. Riordan P., Sanderson J. & Munkhtsog B. 2016. cat in Iran appears much broader than it was Harrington F. A. & Dareshuri B. F. 1976. A Guide to Otocolobus manul. The IUCN Red List of Threat- first thought, the new range extension is not the Mammals of Iran. Iran Department of the ened Species 2016: e.T15640A50657610. indicative of its better status in Iran. More Environment, Tehran, Iran. 93 pp. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/15640/0. research attentions are necessary by both Heptner V. G. & Sludskii A. A. 1972. Mammals Downloaded on 20 September 2016. national authorities and conservationists in of the Soviet Union. Vol. 2, Part 2. Carnivora Ross S., Kamnitzer R., Munkhtsog B. & Harris S. order to assess the current conservation sta- (Hyaenas and Cats). Vysshaya Shkola, Mos- 2010a. Densite selection is critical for Pallas’s tus of the Pallas’s cat in the country. cow. 551 pp. (In Russian). English translation cats (Otocolobus manul). Canadian Journal of by Hoffmann R. S. (Ed.). 1992. Smithsonian Zoology 88, 1-9. Acknowledgements Institution Libraries and the National Science Ross S., Munkhtsog B. & Harris S. 2010b. Dietary We are grateful to all experts who shared their in- Foundation, Washington DC. USA. composition, plasticity, and prey selection of Pal- valuable records of the Pallas’s cat in Iran through Jamsheed R. 1976. Big Game of Iran. Ira- las’s cats. Journal of Mammalogy 91, 811-817. our personal interviews, or two participatory work- nian Department of the Environment, Tehran. Ross S., Munkhtsog B. & Harris S. 2012. Determi- shops in Iran (27-29 November 2011 and 12-14 (In Persian) nants of mesocarnivore range use: relative ef- May 2012) facilitated by Iran DoE, University of the Johnson W. E., Eizirik E., Pecon-Slattery J., Murphy fects of prey and habitat properties on Pallas’s 42 Environment, and IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. W. J., Antunes A., Teeling E. & O’Brien S. J. cat home-range size. Journal of Mammalogy Thanks go to F. Hosseini-Zavarei and E. Sharbafi 2006. The Late radiation of modern 93, 1292-1300. for their contribution during the participatory work- : A genetic assessment. Science 311, Rustamov A. K. & Sopyev O. 1994. Vertebrates in shops and F. Esfandiari and A. Moharrami who 73-77. the Red Data Book of Turkmenistan. In Bioge- gave us the permission to use their Pallas’s cat Joolaee L., Moghimi B., Ansari M. & Ghoddousi ography and Ecology of Turkmenistan. Fet V. & photos in this report. We would like to thank Steve A. 2014. First record of Pallas’s cat from Fars Atamuradov K. I. (Eds). Kluwer Academic Publ., Ross for helpful comments on the manuscript. Province, Iran. Cat News 60, 18-19. Dordrecht, pp. 205-209. Lay D. M. 1967. A study of the mammals of Iran Sunquist M. & Sunquist F. 2002. Wild Cats of the References resulting from the Street expeditions of 1962- World. The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., Aghili A., Masoud R., Murdoch J. D. & Mallon D. 63. Fieldiana: Zoology 54, 1-282. London. 452 pp. P. 2008. First record of Pallas’s cat in northwest Lukarevsky V. S. 2001. Leopard, striped and Webb R., Pain D., McNiven D. & Francis S. 2014. Iran. Cat News 49, 8-9. in Turkmenistan. Signar Publishers, Mos- Pallas’s cat in disturbed habitat on the Tibetan Alekperov Kh. M. 1989. Manul. In Red book of cow, Russia. 128 pp. (In Russian) Plateau. Cat News 60, 19-20. the Azerbaijan SSR. Adygezalov B. M. (Ed.). Misonne X. 1959. Analyse zoogeographique des Ziaie H. 2008. A Field Guide to the Mammals of Ishyg, Baku, Azerbaijan. pp. 37-38. (In Azeri mammiferes de l’Iran. Bruxelles, Memoi¬res Iran. 2nd edition. Iranian Wildlife Center, Teh- and Russian) d’Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de ran, Iran. pp. 423. (In Persian) Brown M. & Munkhtsog B. 2000. Ecology and Behav- Belgique, Deuxieme Serie 59, 1-157. iour of Pallas’ Cat in Mongolia. Cat News 33, 22. Moqanaki E. M., Farhadinia M. S., Mousavi M. & Supporting Online Material SOM Table T1 is Brown J. L., Graham L. H., Wu J., Collins D. & Breitenmoser U. 2010. Distribution and con- available at www..catsg.org. Swanson W. F. 2002. Reproductive endocrine servation status of the in Iran: a responses to photoperiod and exogenous preliminary assessment. Cat News 53, 32-35. 1 Iranian Cheetah Society ICS, 14155-8549 Teh- gonadotropins in the Pallas’ cat (Otocolobus Munkhtsog B., Ross S. & Brown M. 2004. Home ran, Iran manul). Zoo Biology 21, 347-364. Range Characteristics and Conservation of Pal- 2 Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Department Chalani M., Ghoddousi A., Ghadirian T. & Gol- las’ Cat in Mongolia. Unpublished manuscript. of Zoology, University of Oxford, The Recanati- jani R. 2008. First Pallas’s cat photo-trapped in Nowell K. & Jackson P. 1996. Wild cats – status Kaplan Centre, Tubney, Abingdon OX13 5QL, UK. Khojir National Park, Iran. Cat New 49, 7. survey and conservation action plan. IUCN/ 3 Iran Department of Environment, Semnan Pro- Chanchani P. 2008. Sighting of a Manul or Pallas SSC. Cat Specialist Group. IUCN. Gland, Swit- vincial Office, Semnan, Iran Cat in North , India. Cat News 48, 18-19. zerland. 383 pp. 4 Department of Habitats and Biodiversity, Faculty of Etemad E. 1985. Mammals of Iran. 2nd Vol. Iranian Ognev S. I. 1935. Mammals of the U.S.S.R. and adja- Environment and Energy, Science and Research Department of the Environment, Tehran, Iran. cent countries. Vol III. Carnivora (Fissipedia and Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. 298 pp. (In Persian) Pinnepedia). Prog. Sci. Transl., Jerusalem, *

CATnews Special Issue 10 Autumn 2016