A rare wildcat has been found for the first time on the southern island of Tsushima in Nagasaki Prefecture, confirming the species' existence there for the first time in more than two decades, conservation officers said.
It had been feared the highly protected Tsushima leopard cat, one of two species of wildcat found in Japan, had completely disappeared from Tsushima's southern island, while around 100 are believed living on the northern island.
Officers of the Tsushima Wildlife Conservation Center said the 1.13-kg male, thought to have been born only last spring, was found in a weakened state Monday on the property of a company in the town of Izuhara by an employee, who notified authorities.
Staff from the conservation center, which was established by the Environment Ministry to study the Tsushima leopard cat and assist in recovery of the critically endangered species, were summoned to the scene.
They said the rescued feline, apparently suffering malnutrition, is being nursed back to health at the center.
Leopard cats leave their mother's home range six or seven months after birth, at which time they must struggle to survive on their own.
The Tsushima leopard cat, about the same size as a domestic cat but with a white spot on the back of each ear, is thought to have arrived on Tsushima from the Asian continent about 100,000 years ago.
