The serval (Leptailurus serval) is a wild small cat found only in Africa, where it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in range countries. The serval is a solitary carnivore and is active both by day and at night. It is known to have the longest legs of any cat relative to its body size.
The name "serval" is derived from (lobo-) cerval, i.e. Portuguese for lynx, used by Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in 1765 for a spotted cat that was kept at the time in the Royal Menagerie in Versailles; lobo-cerval is derived from Latin lupus cervarius "lynx", literally and respectively "wolf" and "of or pertaining to deer".
The name Leptailurus derives from the Greek λεπτός leptos meaning "fine, delicate", and αἴλουρος ailouros meaning "cat".
The association of servals with human beings dates to the time of Ancient Egypt. Servals are depicted as gifts or traded objects from Nubia in Egyptian art.
Servals are occasionally kept as pets, although their wild nature means that ownership of servals is regulated in some countries.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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ViviparousAmong animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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CursorialA cursorial organism is one that is adapted specifically to run. An animal can be considered cursorial if it has the ability to run fast (e.g. chee...
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Ambush predatorAmbush predators are carnivorous animals that capture or trap prey by stealth, luring, or by (typically instinctive) strategies utilizing an elemen...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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SolitaryNo
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe serval is a slender, medium-sized cat. Males tend to be sturdier than females. Prominent characteristics include the small head, large ears, spotted and striped coat, long legs, and a black-tipped tail that is around 30 cm (12 in) long. The closely set ears can rotate up to 180 degrees independently of each other and help in locating prey efficiently. The coat is golden-yellow to buff and extensively marked with black spots and stripes. The spots show great variation in size. Facial features include the whitish chin, spots, and streaks on the cheeks and the forehead, brownish or greenish eyes, white whiskers on the snout and near the ears, which are black on the back with a white horizontal band in the middle; three to four black stripes run from the back of the head onto the shoulders and then break into rows of spots. The white underbelly has dense and fluffy basal fur, and the soft guard hairs (the layer of fur protecting the basal fur) are 5-10 cm (2-3.9 in) long. Guard hairs are up to 3 cm (1.2 in) long on the neck, back and flanks, and are merely 1 cm (0.39 in) long on the face. The serval has a good sense of smell, hearing, and vision.
In North Africa, servals occur only in Morocco and have been reintroduced in Tunisia, but are feared to be extinct in Algeria. They live in semi-arid areas and cork oak forests close to the Mediterranean Sea, but avoid rainforests and arid areas. They occur in the Sahel and are widespread in Southern Africa. Servals inhabit grasslands, moorlands, and bamboo thickets at high altitudes up to 3,800 m (12,500 ft) on Mount Kilimanjaro. They prefer areas close to water bodies such as wetlands and savanna, which provide cover such as reeds and tall grasses.
Servals are active both in the day and at night; their activity might peak in the early morning, around twilight, and at midnight. Servals might be active for a longer time on cool or rainy days. During the hot midday, they rest or groom themselves in the shade of bushes and grasses. Servals remain cautious of their vicinity, though they may be less alert when no large carnivores or prey animals are around. Servals walk as much as 2 to 4 km (1.2 to 2.5 mi) every night. They will often use special trails to reach certain hunting areas. Servals are solitary animals, interacting with each other in the mating season, when pairs of opposite sexes may stay together. The only long-lasting bond appears to be of the mother and her cubs, which remain together up to one year of age. Both males and females establish home ranges, and are most active only in certain regions ('core areas') within them. Home ranges might overlap extensively, but occupants show minimal interaction. Aggressive encounters are rare, as servals appear to mutually avoid one another rather than fight and defend their ranges. On occasions where two adult servals meet in conflict over territory, a ritualistic display may ensue, in which one will place a paw on the other's chest while observing their rival closely; this interaction rarely escalates into a fight. Servals are usually sedentary, shifting only a few kilometres away even if they leave their range. These animals locate prey by their strong sense of hearing. They remain motionless for up to 15 minutes; when prey is within range, they jump with all four feet up to 4 m (13 ft) in the air and attack with their front paws. To kill small prey, a serval slowly stalks it, then pounces on it with the forefeet directed toward the chest, and finally lands on it with its forelegs outstretched. During a leap, a serval can reach more than 2 m (6 ft 7 in) above the ground and cover a horizontal distance of up to 3.6 m (11 ft 10 in). Servals sometimes cache large kills to be consumed later by concealing them in dead leaves and grasses.
Servals are carnivores that prey on rodents, particularly vlei rats, shrews, small birds, hares, frogs, insects, and reptiles. They also feed on grass that can facilitate digestion or act as an emetic. Occasionally, they also hunt larger prey such as duikers, hares, flamingoes, spoonbills, waterfowl, and young antelopes.
Servals are polygynous and don’t form permanent pairs. The mating season varies geographically; births peak in winter in Botswana, and toward the end of the dry season in the Ngorongoro Crater. Gestation lasts for 2-3 months, after which a litter of 1 to 4 kittens is born. Births take place in secluded areas, for example in dense vegetation or burrows abandoned by aardvarks and porcupines. Blind at birth, newborns weigh nearly 250 g (9 oz) and have soft, woolly hair (greyer than in adults) and unclear markings. The eyes open after 9-13 days. Weaning begins a month after birth; the mother brings small kills to her kittens and calls out to them as she approaches the "den". A mother with young kittens rests for a notably lesser time and has to spend almost twice the time and energy hunting than do other servals. If disturbed, the mother moves her kittens one by one to a safer place. Kittens eventually start accompanying their mother to hunts. At around 6 months, they acquire their permanent canines and begin to hunt themselves; the young leave their mother at about 12 months of age. They may reach reproductive maturity from 12 to 25 months of age.
The main threat to servals is the degradation of wetlands and grasslands. The trade in their skins, though declining, still occurs in countries such as Benin and Senegal. In West Africa, servals have significance in traditional medicine. Pastoralists often kill servals to protect their livestock, though servals generally do not prey on livestock.
The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the serval total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List, and its numbers today are stable.
The serval is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List and is included in CITES Appendix II. It occurs in several protected areas across its range. Hunting of servals is prohibited in Algeria, Botswana, Congo, Kenya, Liberia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tunisia, and South Africa's Cape Province; hunting regulations apply in Angola, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Malawi, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Togo, and Zambia.
