The Pallas’s cat may be a predator of nature, but it’s got to be one of nature’s cutest hunting animals. While famed for its grumpy facial expression, its rounded, low-set ears, uniquely round pupils and thick, bushy tail make it an extremely lovable grumpy feline.
Recently, one of these cats, which also happens to be highly elusive and whose population is largely unknown, was captured on camera by an Iranian nature enthusiast. Majid Batebi, who goes by Batebis online, used a camera trap to capture the footage of the feline near his home village of Dava in the highlands of Mazandaran province.
In the footage, we see the curiously cute yet still grumpy Pallas’s cat (known locally as “manul”) approach the trail camera before nimbly backing away. The footage clearly shows the size of the cat, which is typically around the same size as a domestic house cat – usually between 5-11 lbs (2-5 kg).
The high-quality images also highlight the cat’s thick fur, which happens to be the densest of any cat species on the planet, insulating it against extreme winter temperatures. While temperatures where Batebi recorded the footage in northern Iran can drop to -4°F (-20°C), Pallas’s cats have been observed in temperatures as low as -58°F (-50°C) in the Eurasian Steppe.
In his home province, Batebi has recorded a range of wildlife beyond Pallas’s cats using camera traps. In 2021, he recorded gray wolves and Bezoar ibex strolling the highlands against the backdrop of Mount Damavand. The dormant volcano stands at 18,410 feet (5,610m), making it the tallest in all of Asia.
At the end of the recent Pallas’s cat footage, the cute feline wanders back to the rock face behind it before climbing toward the edge of the camera frame, demonstrating its dainty rock-faring skills.
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