WILD CAT
Felis silvestris
STATUS: Extinct
Native but long extinct. According
to Pilkington (1789) ‘wild cats are sometimes seen in woods in
the wild state’ implying they were still present towards the end
of the 18th century, but there is no subsequent information. Wild Cats
probably disappeared from the county some time in the early 19th century.
Two reported sightings in the Derwent Valley in the 1970s must have been
misidentifications or releases (Branson 1996). Feral domestic cats are
occasionally reported but no established populations are known.
Native but long extinct. According
to Pilkington (1789) ‘wild cats are sometimes seen in woods in
the wild state’ implying they were still present towards the end
of the 18th century, but there is no subsequent information. Wild Cats
probably disappeared from the county some time in the early 19th century.
Two reported sightings in the Derwent Valley in the 1970s must have been
misidentifications or releases (Branson 1996). Feral domestic cats are
occasionally reported but no established populations are known.
