Once considered a myth among shepherds , seen only by fearful Farmer in the dead of nighttime , an ongoing project on the Mediterranean island of Corsica set out to uncover the mystery of the ghjattu - volpe , translated as “ cat - fox . ”
Recent genetic analysis of the knotty wildcat has shown that the ghjattu - volpe could , in fact , be a previously unrecognized species of wildcat , as reported byAFP news representation .
While its status as a Modern specie has not yet been formally recognize , theNational Hunting and Wildlife Office(ONCFS ) of France go for their workplace could help efforts to protect the species and raise awareness of its plight .
“ We believe that it ’s a risky raw species which was known but not scientifically key out because it ’s an extremely inconspicuous animate being with nocturnal drug abuse , " say Pierre Benedetti , master environmental technician of ONCFS in Corsica , in a conversation withAFP .
There are currently two broadly speaking recognize metal money of wildcat in the human race – theEuropean wildcat(Felis silvestris silvestris ) and theAfrican wildcat(F. silvestris lybica ) , although there is some dispute over their precise categorisation . There are also numerous subspecies of these wildcats , include theSardinian wild cat(F. lybica sarda ) found on the island of Sardinia , Corsica ’s neighbor . The scientific analysis of ghjattu - volpe has n’t yet been concluded , however , the research worker trust its genetic science could be distinct enough for it to be recognized as a new subspecies , if not a new coinage .
" By looking at its DNA , we could secernate it aside from the European wolf , Felis silvestris silvestris . It ’s secretive to the African forest cat , Felis silvestris lybica , but its exact individuality is still to be determined , " Benedetti add .
The cat - George Fox can only be find in a pocket-sized sliver of the Asco forest in Corsica , a mountainous Mediterranean island located southeast of the Gallic mainland . It might calculate just like a house pet , but it moderate some singular feature that set it apart from both domestic qat and other beast , most notably its prospicient , slinky ringed tail with a black tip . It was yield the name " cat - fox " due to its supple body and tawny - red pelt . It ’s believed the felines were first brought over to Corsica by man during the Neolithic era , over 8,000 years ago , most probable as a grade of rat - eating plague mastery .
unmistakably , people only got their first secure look at this Corsica indigene in 2008 when a mischievous individual was found in a chicken coup , Benedetti told AFP . The first few computed axial tomography - slyboots were then only take apart by scientist some eight years later , in 2016 , after the ONCFS caught a dozen somebody on the island .
However , this small wildcat remains a inscrutable savage . conservationist have very minuscule idea about its behavior and diet , nor do they live the size of the population . Perhaps with further research , after ten of caption and venture , the story of Corsica ’s ghjattu - volpe might ultimately be revealed .
