Which cat are you?

Which of these endangered cats best matches your personality? Try our meow-zing quiz to find out!

1. Name your ideal weekend getaway:

A) Hiking in the rugged Scottish countryside

B) Hiking your heart out in the Changbai Mountains in northeast China.

C) A busy city break in Shanghai

D) A restful weekend on a small island in Japan

2. Pick a pattern:

A) Tartan

B) Spots

C) Stripes

D) Wave

3. How many of you are left in the wild?

A) About 35

B) About 84

C) Fewer than 20

D) Approximately 100

 

4. Pick a snack:

A) Rabbit, chips and curry sauce (hold the chips)

B) Siberian roe deer on toast

C) Slow–roasted muntjac

D) Ryukyu flying fox, drizzled with soy sauce

 

5. Describe your tail:

A) Moderately thick and blunt at the tip

B) Long, bushy and covered in spots

C) Long and stripey

D) Darker at one end

 

6. Pick a banging dance floor filler:

A) ‘Take Me Out’ by Franz Ferdinand

B) ‘Respect’ by Aretha Franklin

C) ‘Tiger Feet’ by Mud

D) Anything J-pop, obviously

7. Name a key quality you possess:

A) I am ferocious and independent

B) I am adaptable

C) I have the most beeeeeautiful fur

D) I am happy in my own company

 

8. What’s your style of dress?

A) Rough around the edges and angry as a wasp at a sugar-free food festival

B) Death by polka dots

C) Furious Wotsit-monster

D) Like all the greatest fashion icons, I defy categorisation

 

9. Your BFF would describe your personal style as:

A) Fierce

B) Classic

C) Majestic

D) Quirky

Answers – mostly A:

You are a Scottish wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris)

Talk about a walk on the wild side! You’re rebellious, striking and untameable, just like the formidable Scottish wildcat. These animals once roamed free all over the UK, that is until about 2,000 years ago, when the Romans arrived. The Romans introduced domestic cats to this country, and over time their shy and elusive cousins retreated to the most sparsely populated areas of land. Today, because of logging and interbreeding, there are thought to be only 35 proper wildcats left in Scotland. Fortunately Scottish Wildcat Action is working with local people to halt and reverse the extinction process.  

Words: Freya Hardy. Illustration: Kate Hazell
Illustration: Kate Hazell

Answers – mostly B:

You are an Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis)

Blimey! You don’t mess about, do you? You’re direct, no‑nonsense and able to take on anything life throws at you, just like an Amur leopard. These beautiful cats are found in eastern Russia and north-east China. They can run up to 60 km/h and leap to heights of three metres. Their thick fur and pale colour mean they can thrive in both hot and cold temperatures, but numbers are seriously dwindling because of habitat loss, poaching and hunting. The Amur leopard is listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Illustration: Kate Hazell

Answers – mostly C:

You are a South China tiger (Panthera tigris amoyensis)

Oooh, get you!  Elegant. Majestic even, you’re just like the South China tiger, a wildcat both splendid and rare. Indeed, the South China tiger is so rare that most experts think it’s extinct in the wild. One hasn’t been seen outside of a zoo for more than 25 years. An amazing hunter that is agile on land as well as in water, disappearing habitat is to blame for its extinction. There are plans to reintroduce captive-bred animals back into the wild, which is just as well, because the future of this incredible species depends upon it.

Illustration: Kate Hazell

Answers – mostly D:

You are an Iriomote cat (Prionailurus bengalensis iriomotensis)

Enigmatic, quirky and happiest in your own company, you’re just like the Iriomote cat from Japan. This solitary cat only lives in the sub-tropical forest on the island of Iriomote, a fact that makes it extremely vulnerable to climate change. These creatures are excellent swimmers and climbers but they spend most of their time on the ground. Active during the night, they sleep in caves or hollow logs during the day. There are only about 100 animals left in the wild. Threatened by human development and interbreeding with domestic cats, this is a sub-species on its last legs.

Illustration: Kate Hazell

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Words: Freya Hardy. Illustration: Kate Hazell