Lest we forget these ‘out of sight’ creatures
The Jungle cat:Listed as ‘near threatened’
In spite of the callous disregard for fellow animals and all the negligence and selfishness, we have not yet managed to stifle the extraordinary tenacity of nature and its overpowering drive to survive at any cost. Most people rarely think about it, but among the fragments of the landscape there are awe-inspiring creatures we never dreamed of, living alongside us”.
This is a quote from the preface of ‘Phantoms of the Night’, a coffee table book on the wild cats of Sri Lanka which will be launched on December 17. Stealthy, moving swiftly, attacking lethally, and disappearing under the curtain of darkness at the slightest disturbance, these wild cats are fittingly called phantoms.
‘Phantom of the Night’ is a collective effort by Thilak Jayaratne, Janaka Gallangoda, Nadika Hapuarachchi, and Madura de Silva. The team has previously published coffee table books on Primates of Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan Freshwater Fish, and Mannar Unbound. Madura says there was greater attention to primates, freshwater fish, and habitats of Mannar because of their books which encouraged them to select Sri Lanka’s wild cats for their latest work.
“Out of sight also means out of mind, so we think the book will trigger public attention to these forgotten creatures, that will ultimately contribute to the conservation of Sri Lanka’s wild cats,” he adds.
The fishing cat: Well adapted to living in urban settings
Sri Lanka is home to four species of wild cats: the leopard, fishing cat, jungle cat, and rusty-spotted cat. The leopard is the elite member of this family overshadowing the other wild cats. But some of the wild cats even survive on edges of congested cities and rural villages, so we want this book to mainly raise awareness about Sri Lanka’s other wild cats, says Madura, who is President of the Wildlife Conservation Society of Galle (WCSG). The society’s research on wild cats is included in the book, but presented in a simple format with the story being told through photographs, Madura says.
The Rusty-spotted cat is the world’s smallest cat, and the Fishing cat is a wetland specialist. According to the National Red List of threatened fauna, the Jungle cat is Near Threatened and all other wild cats are listed as Endangered.
The leopard is also generally active at night, but Sri Lanka is known as a country for leopard sightings during daytime in many of our national parks – particularly Yala and Wilpattu where they are habituated to human presence.
It is very difficult to observe these wild cats during a daytime excursion and thus it had been a challenge to photograph them, Nadika Hapuarachchi, one of the photographers of the book told the Sunday Times. “The rusty-spotted cat is the first to come out and get active around 7.30 at night, but it is only around 11 or midnight that we had most of our fishing cat encounters, though contrarily, we had many sightings of the jungle cat even during the daytime,” he added.
The world’s smallest cat: It looks cute but the rusty spotted cat can be quite fierce
Lighting was the other challenge these photographers faced. “When we encounter a wild cat on jungle roads while travelling in vehicles, we mostly used the headlights of the vehicle to take the photos through the car window. There are some wild cats that visit the same spots regularly, so we set up lights without disturbing the animal and wait in a hide until it comes closer,” Nadika explained. For research purposes, WCSG set up camera traps and the book contains several photos picked up by the camera traps.
The authors dedicate “Phantoms of the Night” to the wild cat conservationists who work to safeguard the future of wild cats.
‘Phantoms of the Night’ will be launched with an exhibition at the Lionel Wendt Art Centre on December 18 and 19. The book is published by Chaya Publishers and has a pre-publication offer of Rs. 5000. To order please contact the publishers through email Srilankanwildcats@gmail.com or by phone 0777393161.
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