Where to see the African Wild Cat in South Africa

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the African Wild Cat at stays in or beside Kruger National Park, uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, Cederberg Wilderness Area, Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Addo Elephant National Park and Marakele National Park and other reserves. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

The African Wild Cat is most recorded in Northern Cape (36% of records), Mpumalanga (24% of records), Western Cape (22% of records), based on 498 iNaturalist observations. 109 places to stay on Spekboom in South Africa have recorded the African Wild Cat on site or nearby.

The African Wild Cat is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. Kruger National Park: Apr-Sep; uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park: year-round, dry season May-Sep; Cederberg Wilderness Area: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct; Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park: Aug-Oct, flowers, Mar-May. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

The African Wild Cat (Felis lybica) is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

The African wildcat (Felis lybica), also called Near Eastern wildcat is a wildcat species that lives in Northern Africa, the Near East and around the periphery of the Arabian Peninsula. The status Least Concern on the IUCN Red List is attributed to the species, including all subspecies of wildcats.