Zoo Boise Is Now Home To 10% Of The Worlds Sand Cat Population

Congrats!!! Zoo Boise is now home to 10% of the worlds Sand Cat population. You might be asking yourself... What is a Sand Cat? Here is the official description according to nationalzoo :

"Sand cats are a small, solitary cat native to deserts in Africa and Asia. Superbly adapted to life in the desert, they can live without water, run on shifting sand and detect prey underground."

How does a cat detect prey underground? and why does Zoo Boise have them if they're native to deserts in Africa an Asia? again nationalzoo provides great insight:

"Sand cats prefer a very dry, arid habitat with little vegetation, for which they are well adapted. They are sand-dwelling creatures, inhabiting dry plains and rocky valleys where conditions are extreme. Surface temperatures can reach 124 degrees Fahrenheit (51 degrees C) during the daytime, then drop to as low as 31 degrees Fahrenheit (-0.5 degrees C) at night. This species prefers flat or rolling terrains, and will retreat to burrows when temperatures become too extreme. Due to the importance of burrowing and digging to sand cats, they are not found in areas where soil is compacted."

When you take into consideration that there are only 51 Sand Cats in Zoos, you realize that this is a big deal.

"This is an incredibly significant birth for the entire conservation community," said Zoo Boise Director Gene Peacock in a press release. "The babies are doing well and we look forward to introducing them to the community."

According to Zoo Boise this is the first litter of Sand Cats to be born on site. When do you get to see them? Zoo Boise is open daily from 10am to 5pm and the cats will be on display in the Small Animal Kingdom. It's important to note that the babies are still in the den box so it might be a few weeks before they actually venture out and can be spotted.