Chinese mountain cat: status, range, size and diet
A sand-coloured wildcat found only on the eastern Tibetan Plateau, listed as Vulnerable and among the least-known cats in the world.
Also known as Felis bieti, Chinese desert cat, Chinese alpine steppe cat, Biet's cat
At a glance
| Scientific name | Felis bieti |
|---|---|
| Group | Small wild cats |
| Weight | 5.5-9 kg |
| Length | Head and body about 60-85 cm, tail 29-35 cm |
| Known for | A cat found nowhere outside China, whose prey is the same animal herders are encouraged to poison. |
Status
| IUCN Red List category | Vulnerable |
|---|---|
| Assessed in | 2022 |
| Population estimate | Fewer than 10,000 mature individuals |
| Estimate from | 2022 |
Where it lives
| Range | Eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau in China, in Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Tibet |
|---|---|
| Habitat | Alpine meadow and shrub, high steppe and conifer forest edge at about 2,500-5,000 m |
| Diet | Pikas, other small rodents and birds |
Main threats
- Poisoning campaigns against pikas
- Hunting for fur
- Habitat loss
- Road deaths
- Interbreeding with domestic cats
About
The Chinese mountain cat is a stout, sand-coloured wildcat with faint dark stripes on the face and legs, black ear tips and a tail ringed near the tip. Its skull is broad, and the long hair between the foot pads helps it on cold ground. It is heavier than a typical house cat and one of the largest of the Felis species.
Little is known about its biology. It is solitary and active mainly at night and dusk. It rests and raises young in burrows dug by marmots and badgers. Mating is thought to take place in winter, with litters of two to four kittens born in late spring.
For some years it was classed as a subspecies of the wildcat. The IUCN Cat Specialist Group has treated it as a full species since 2017. Genetic studies indicate that it shares a common ancestor with the Asiatic wildcat roughly a million and a half years ago.
Where it lives and what it eats
The species is endemic to China. It lives on the eastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with records in Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Tibet, in treeless steppe, alpine meadow, shrubland and the edges of conifer forest between about 2,500 and 5,000 m. Reports from several other provinces have been attributed to other cats or could not be confirmed.
Pikas, small burrowing relatives of rabbits, are the staple, with mole rats, voles, birds such as pheasants and partridges, and probably carrion. It is also able to kill Himalayan marmots.
Threats and conservation
The 2022 Red List assessment places the species at Vulnerable, with fewer than 10,000 mature individuals and a declining, fragmented population. China rates it more severely at the national level. Mass poisoning of pikas, voles and mole rats as part of grassland pest control removes the cat's main prey and can poison the cats themselves. Hunters also take the cat for fur, mostly for local hats and clothes. Overgrazing and new roads and fences degrade habitat. Where domestic cats live near villages, interbreeding has been recorded.
The cat is fully protected in China and listed in CITES Appendix II.
Cats and people
Few people outside the plateau have seen the cat, and it was described from specimens in the 1890s. Pikas are prey for many other predators too, so changes to pest control on the grasslands would help the cat as well as the rest of the plateau's wildlife.
Profile last reviewed November 7, 2026