African Cats List – Ten Wild Cats of Africa
African Cats Lists
Here are three African cat lists as well as some posters of the ten wild cats of Africa:
1. by Common Name
2. by Scientific Name
3. by Lineage
1. Alphabetical List of African Cats by Common Name
African Golden Cat (Caracal aurata)
African Wildcat (Felis lybica)
Black-footed Cat (Felis nigripes)
Caracal (Caracal caracal)
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus)
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Lion (Panthera leo)
Sand Cat (Felis margarita)
Serval (Leptailurus serval)
2. List of African Cats by Scientific Name (by Genus)
Acinonyx genus
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
Caracal genus
African Golden Cat (Caracal aurata)
Caracal (Caracal caracal)
Felis genus
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus)
African Wildcat (Felis lybica)
Sand Cat (Felis margarita)
Black-footed Cat (Felis nigripes)
Serval (Leptailurus serval)
Panthera genus
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Lion (Panthera leo)
3. Wild Cats of Africa List by Lineage
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Lion (Panthera leo)
Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
African Golden Cat (Caracal aurata)
Caracal (Caracal caracal)
Serval (Leptailurus serval)
Jungle Cat (Felis chaus)
African Wildcat (Felis lybica)
Sand Cat (Felis margarita)
Black-footed Cat (Felis nigripes)
Download Pdf - List of African Cats
Taxonomy Reference: Kitchener et al. 2017. A revised taxonomy of the Felidae. The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group.
African Carnivore Poster available from:
Korck Publishers - South Africa
Natural History Book Service (NHBS) - UK
Both offer international shipping.
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African Cats: A Spectrum of Size and Adaptation
Africa’s feline fauna ranges from the awe-inspiring big cats of the Panthera genus to the diminutive cats of the Felis genus, reflecting a remarkable diversity of form and function.
Here, we group the ten iconic African cats by size - three big cats (> 30 kg), three medium-sized cats (6–19 kg), and four smaller cats (< 16 kg, three of which weigh under 10 kg) - and compare their approximate weight and dimensions.
All measurements are approximate adult ranges and include natural variation between sexes and subspecies.
Big Cats (> 30 kg)
- Lion (Panthera leo)
- Weight: 160–195 kg
- Body length (head–to–body): 2.7–3.5 m
- Shoulder height: 90–135 cm
- Tail length: ~1 m
- Leopard (Panthera pardus)
- Weight: 30–65.8 kg
- Body length: 1.6–2.3 m
- Shoulder height: 44–78 cm
- Tail length: 60–70 cm
- Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)
- Weight: 36.7–54.1 kg
- Body length: 1.5–2.3 m
- Shoulder height: 77–94 cm
- Tail length: 60–84 cm
Collectively, African big cats exceed 30 kg, span from 1.5 to 3.5 m in length including tail, and tower up to a meter at the shoulder.
Medium‐Sized Cats (6–20 kg)
- Caracal (Caracal caracal)
- Weight: 6–20 kg
- Body length: 60–75 cm
- Shoulder height: 40–50 cm
- Tail length: 22–30 cm
- Serval (Leptailurus serval)
- Weight: 9–18 kg
- Body length: 67–100 cm
- Shoulder height: 40–65 cm
- Tail length: 24–45 cm
- African Golden Cat (Caracal aurata)
- Weight: 6–14 kg
- Body length: 61–102 cm
- Shoulder height: 38–55 cm
- Tail length: 16–46 cm
Though lighter than the big cats, these cats remain robust, standing about half a meter tall at the shoulder and reaching up to a meter in head–body length.
Smaller Cats (< 16 kg)
Three of these four cats weigh under 10 kg; and the larger Jungle Cat under 16 kg.
- Black-Footed Cat (Felis nigripes)
- Weight: 1–2.5 kg
- Body length: 36–52 cm
- Shoulder height: ~20 cm
- Tail length: 12–20 cm
- Sand Cat (Felis margarita)
- Weight: 1.35–3.4 kg
- Body length: 39–57 cm
- Shoulder height: 24–36 cm
- Tail length: 22–31 cm
- Jungle Cat (Felis chaus)
- Weight: 2–16 kg
- Body length: 59–76 cm
- Shoulder height: 35–38 cm
- Tail length: 20–31 cm
- African Wildcat (Felis lybica)
- Weight: 3–8 kg
- Body length: 45–80 cm
- Shoulder height: ~35 cm
- Tail length: 20–38 cm
These smaller species inhabit niches from arid deserts (sand cat) to savanna grasslands (African wildcat), with compact bodies under a meter long and modest shoulder heights.
This comparative overview underscores how African cats - from the kingly Lion to the petite Black-footed Cat - have evolved body sizes and proportions suited to their habitats and hunting strategies on the continent.