Recently the increasing popularity is gained by unusual representatives of the cat family - the manula also known as palassova cats. Resembling ordinary cats superficially, they have a number of distinctive properties.
Appearance of a manulThe sizes of manul it is a little more, than at usual house cats. Trunk length at an adult animal is from 50 to 65 centimeters, the tail can be from 23 to 30 and more centimeters. Manula, on average, of 2 — 5 kilograms weigh.
Manula received the second name in honor of the German scientist Peter Pallas who in the 18th century gave the first the description of these predators living on coast of the Caspian Sea.
It is easy to distinguish Manul from ordinary cats because of more dense and massive addition: the strong well-muscled body and short thick paws allow an animal to hunt. Dense wool protects and decorates an animal. According to scientists, in one square centimeter of a surface of a body at a manul about 9000 hairs reaching in length about 7 centimeters can go in.
If at early age the kittens very much remind cubs of ordinary domestic cats, noticeable differences begin to be shown with age. In particular, differently the head having the special building looks, and pupils of yellow eyes at bright light do not become flat, keeping round shape. Also special bunches of wool on cheeks — so-called tanks are characteristic of manul. According to scientific research, among the cat family of a manula are leaders in density and fluffiness of fur. The color at these animals generally identical also consists of a fancy combination of hairs of light gray and pale-yellow and ocherous shades. Because each hair has a white tip, at a view of a manul it seems that slightly strewed lightly it with snow.
Behavior and habits of wild manulUnder natural conditions wild manula live in the territory of Central and Central Asia, most often they meet in low-snow areas. Usually these animals choose for accommodation steppe or semidesertic sites in mountains, they meet and in melkosopochnik and intermountain hollows. Especially to liking to manula the area with shrubby thickets and stone scatterings and also rocky clefts. Scientists managed to record that manula are capable to rise to level 3000 — 4800 meters. Manula are most active early in the morning and in twilight. Animals, as a rule, create the den in rocky crevices or small peshcherka and also under stones. Cases when manula adapted for themselves the old holes made once by groundhogs, badgers and even foxes are known.
The assumptions that manula - distant relatives of the Persian cats meet. Defenders of this theory lean on a number of similar signs (fluffy wool, rounded shapes and an unusual shape of the head).
These wild cats hunt, usually concealing production or waiting at stones and minks. During hunting the manul is very much helped by a color which is a fine camouflage. At the same time, according to zoologists, these animals can be considered the most sluggish and slow of wild cats. It is almost impossible to see quickly running manul, usually he moves slowly. Having scented danger, animals prefer to hide or get on stones and rocks to hide from the possible enemy. Alarmed animals publish characteristic hoarse rumbling and also sharply sniff, reminding behavior of domestic cats. Manul prefers to eat most often creepers and other species of mouse-like rodents. However cases when animals managed to catch gophers, surchat, birds and even hares-tolayev are known. In the summer of a manula can eat as well various insects.
The interesting facts about manulaAccording to a number of ethnographers many fairy tales and riddles about cats at the people of Central and Central Asia, are devoted to manula - quite often in folklore collections it is possible to see an image of a lazy and slow animal capable for hours to watch for production and to hide quickly at the first signs of danger. Similar characteristic, really, very much is suitable for this species of wild cats. The image of a manul is more often used in the most various purposes recently. One of the most known symbols is manut on an emblem of Moscow Zoo.