#0128 · 🦊 mammals

Serval

Leptailurus serval

LCleast concern 🦊 Mammals 📍 in Europe, not in NL

10 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

what is it?

The serval ( Leptailurus serval ) is a wild cat native to Africa. It is rare in North Africa and the Sahel, but widespread in sub-Saharan countries except rainforest regions. On the IUCN Red List it is listed as Least Concern. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in range countries.

base stats

NL sightings 0iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 2,234iNaturalist observations
threat LCleast concern

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

No confirmed wild sightings in the Netherlands on iNaturalist: you'd have to travel for this one.
2,234 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Scientifically named by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber in 1776 (250 years ago).