Felis silvestris Schreber, 1775 . Die Säugethiere, 2(15):pl. 107 (1775]; text 3(23):397[1777].

TYPE LOCALITY: Not given. Fixed by Haltenorth (1953) as "vielleicht Nordfrankreich". Listed by Pocock (1951) as " Germany " .

DISTRIBUTION: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Arabia, Botswana, Chad, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Guinea, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Pakistan, Poland, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Tunisia, Türkistan, United Kingdom, Zambia, Zimbabwe. Introduced to: Australia, Brazil, Canada, and Madagascar.

STATUS: CITES - Appendix II (the domestic cat, Felis catus, is specifically excluded from protection).

SYNONYMS: agrius Bate, 1906; algiricus Fischer, 1829; angorensis Gmelin, 1788; antiquorum Fischer, 1829; aureus Kerr, 1792; bouvieri Rochebrune, 1883; brevicaudata Schinz, 1844; brockmani Pocock, 1944; bubastis Hemprich and Ehrenberg, 1832; caeruleus Erxleben, 1777; caffra A. Smith, 1826; cafra Desmarest, 1822; caligata Temminck, 1824; catus Linnaeus, 1758; caucasicus Satunin, 1905; caudatus Gray, 1874; cretensis Haltenorth, 1953; cristata Lataste, 1885; cumana Schinz, 1844; cyrenarum Ghigi, 1920; daemon Satunin, 1904; domesticus Erxleben, 1777; euxina Pocock, 1943; ferox Martorelli, 1896; ferus Erxleben, 1777; foxi Pocock, 1944; grampia Miller, 1907; griselda Thomas, 1926; griseoflava Zukowski, 1914; gulata Herman, 1804; haussa Thomas and Hinton, 1921; hispanicus Erxleben, 1777; huttoni Blyth, 1846; iraki Cheesman, 1920; issikulensis Ognev, 1930; japonica Fischer, 1829; jordansi Schwarz, 1930; kozlovi Satunin, 1905; longiceps Bechstein, 1800; longipilis Zukowsky, 1915; lowei Pocock, 1944; lybica Forster, 1780; lybiensis Kerr, 1792; lynesi Pocock, 1944; macrothrix Zukowsky, 1915; madagascariensis Kerr, 1792; maniculata Temminck, 1824; matschiei Zukowsky, 1914; mauritana Cabrera, 1906; mediterranea Martorelli, 1896; megalotis Müller, 1839; mellandi Schwann, 1904; molisana Altobello, 1921; morea Trouessart, 1904; murgabensis Zukowsky, 1914; namaquana Thomas, 1926; nandae Heller, 1913; nesterovi Birula, 1916; nubiensis Kerr, 1792; obscura Desmarest, 1822; ocreata Gmelin, 1791; ornata Gray, 1830; pulchella Gray, 1837; pyrrhus Pocock, 1944; reyi Lavauden, 1929; ruber Gmelin, 1788; rubida Schwann, 1904; ruppelii Schinz, 1825; rusticana Thomas, 1928; salvandola Dekeyser, 1950; sarda Lataste, 1885; schnitnikovi Birula, 1914; servalina Jardine, 1834; shawiana Blanford, 1876; siamensis Trouessart, 1904; sinensis Kerr, 1792; striatus Bechstein, 1800; syriaca Fischer, 1829; taitae Heller, 1913; tartessia Miller, 1907; torquata Blyth, 1863; tralatitia Fischer, 1829; trapezia Blackler, 1916; tristrami Pocock, 1944; ugandae Schwann, 1904; vernayi Roberts, 1932; vulgaris Fischer, 1829; xanthella Thomas, 1926.

COMMENTS: Revised by Ragni and Randi (1986), who included libyca, and by Haltenorth (1953), who included chutuchta, libyca, and vellerosa; however, chutuchta and vellerosa were placed in bieti in Pocock's (1951) revision, provisionally followed here. Includes F. catus (worldwide), which was domesticated from this species (Corbet, 1978c:181). Ellerman and Morrison-Scott (1951) argued that lybica Foster, 1780, was a lapsus for libyca; however, there is no clear internal evidence that the name was misspelled (Meester et al., 1986). Rosevear (1974), Ansell (1978), Smithers (1983), and Meester et al. (1986) retained lybica as separate from silvestris .