Fishing Cat

Why in news?

• A worldwide campaign by the Fishing Cat Conservation Alliance to protect the fishing cat is being undertaken.

About Fishing Cat:

• The fishing cat is a medium-sized wild cat of South and Southeast Asia.
• Since 2016, it is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
• The fishing cat lives foremost in the vicinity of wetlands, along rivers, streams, oxbow lakes, in swamps, and mangroves.
• Fishing cats have a patchy distribution along the Eastern Ghats. They abound in estuarine floodplains, tidal mangrove forests and also inland freshwater habitats. Apart from Sundarbans in West Bengal and Bangladesh, fishing cats inhabit the Chilika lagoon and surrounding wetlands in Odisha, Coringa and Krishna mangroves in Andhra Pradesh.
• The fishing cat is thought to be primarily nocturnal, and  can swim long distances, even under water.
• Fish comprises approximately three-quarters of their diet, with the remainder consisting of birds, insects, and small rodents.
• Fishing cat populations are threatened by destruction of wetlands and have declined severely over the last decade.
• The fishing cat is the state animal of West Bengal.

Prelims Question

Consider the following statements on Fishing Cat:
1.It is considered a critically endangered species.
2.It has become extinct in the wild in India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a)1 only
(b)2 only
(c)Both 1 and 2
(d)Neither 1 nor 2

Answer to the Prelims Question