Baby Sand Cats: Kittens of the Desert
Born to Rotem and Sela, four adorable baby sand cats recently came into the world in Tel Aviv, Israel, giving the country its first group of the species babies in twenty years. The only feline species that can survive in a true desert, the sand cat is known for its ability to go days without water; surviving only off of the liquid nourishment that it gets in its food. Adult sand cats are nocturnal hunters, and are known as swift predators of small rodents and reptiles. Baby sand kittens however, are just flat out adorable, and seem to be primarily on the hunt for affection from their parents.
Never growing larger than two feet long, and rarely weighing more than ten pounds, the sand cat is still an amazing survivalist, using its extra think paw fur to insulate itself from the hot sand and cold nights that the desert presents it with. Living primarily in northern Africa, habitat degradation has unfortunately left the sand cat on the “near threatened” list of endangered species. Arranged breedings, like the one in Tel Aviv, are being done in hopes of insuring the survival of the species. We hope that they succeed, because we’d prefer to have many many years of adorable sand cats ahead of us.
