Food Habits of the Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis euptilurus) in Korea

Prionailurus bengalensis is divided into 12 subspecies from India and Southeast Asia to Russia, which vary clearly in appearance (Nowell and Jackson 1996; Groves 1997). Among them, P.b.euptilurus is reported to inhabit Manchuria, the northeastern part of China, East Russia, Tsushima Islands of Japan, and Korea (Nowell and Jackson 1996). Prionailurus bengalensis is widely distributed but threatened by habitat loss, hunting, and commercial trade in Southeast Asia. Currently, P.bengalensis has been listed and protected under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES 2011). The subspecies P.b.bengalensis has also been designated as endangered by the United States Department of the Interior (Nowak 1999). In an attempt to understand the status of the wild population, several researchers have focused on this species' distribution, potential impacts on population dynamics, and feeding behavior (Rabinowitz 1990; Tatara and Doi 1994; Grassman 2000; Rajaratnam 2000; Austin 2002; Grassman et al. 2005; Rajaratnam et al. 2007; Izawa et al. 2009).