Title
First report of Pallas's cat in Sagarmatha National Park - Mount Everest Region, Nepal
Author(s)
Seimon, Tracie A.; Lim, Marisa; Nightingale, Batya; Elvin, S.; Elmore, A.; Seimon, Anton
Published
2022
Publisher
Cat News
Abstract
We present the first report of Pallas’s cat Otocolobus manul in eastern Nepal, within Sagarmatha National Park, Mount Everest Region, based on genetic evidence from scat samples. We collected the samples from two locations 6 km apart at 5,110 and 5,190 m elevation. DNA metabarcoding analysis identified two individuals from the collected samples. Prey species identified in the scat samples consisted of pika Ochotona roylei (in all samples) and mountain weasel Mustela altaica (in one sample). Red fox Vulpes vulpes scat was identified from the same location as the Pallas’s cat, indicating an overlap in predator territory. These findings extend the range of Pallas’s cat into eastern Nepal and add a new species to the list of known mammals in Sagarmatha National Park.

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PUB35911