Sand cats

Inhabiting the deserts of northern Africa and western and central Asia, the sand cat is the world’s only cat that lives primarily in true desert conditions. Little is known about its behavioral ecology. Nocturnal and elusive, the sand cat is considered rare in the wild. However, there is still a lot of research to be done as few reliable records or sightings of these cats currently exist.

The sand cat is one of the five small cat species with which the Zoo’s Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW) works on its Small Cat Signature Project.  In addition to conducting zoo-based research on the reproductive biology of the sand cat, the Zoo also supports field research in the Moroccan Sahara.