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The Cat Specialist Group is responsible for the conservation of wild cat species

Last Updated:

May 7, 2026

The Cat Specialist Group (Cat SG) is the answer to the question: how does the world work together to study and conserve the 40 wild cat species when they are scattered across numerous countries, and touch the lives of so many people?

Who is the Cat Specialist Group?

Currently (according to the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group website) they are composed of more than 200 cat experts (scientists, conservationists, and wildlife managers), from 65 countries. And it should be noted that this specialist group for the cat family is just “one of over 160 specialist groups forming the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)” (2024).

World map with all the countries and oceans labeled

The 200+ Cat SG members are from 65 countries

vector by David Alexander Presli via Vecteezy

What is the purpose of the Cat Specialist Group?

“The Cat Specialist Group is responsible for the global monitoring and conservation of all [40] wild living cat species” (IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2024). They are very interested in promoting dialogue (sharing knowledge) among cat scientists and experts around the world; because cooperation is the key for wild cat conservation.

Illustration of world map with wild cat species: Lynx, Cougar, Ocelot, Jaguar, Serval, Cheetah, Lion, Wildcat, Manul, & Tiger

The 40 wild cat species live all around the world

What does the Cat Specialist Group do?

Listed on the IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group (2024) website, the main tasks include:

“Maintaining and updating the IUCN Red List of Threatened SpeciesTM for the cat taxa;

Supporting Green Status Assessments of the cat taxa;

Developing conservation strategies, action plans and policy guidelines for cat taxa and support their implementation;

Advising governmental and private organisations engaged in species conservation;

Working together with international conventions such as Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) or the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS);

Enhancing collaboration and improving networking between experts, organisations and institutions working on cat conservation;

Supporting Cat SG members with their work for cat conservation;

Establishing and distributing information on the status and conservation; needs of all wild cat species through an own publication series Cat News and the Cat SG website;

Education and training of nature conservation experts (capacity development).”

History of the Cat Specialist Group

The history of the Cat SG according to the website (IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2024):

1971 founded when international cat specialists had a meeting in Florida at Lion Safari

Lion (Panthera leo)

designed by wirestock – Freepik.com

1971-1981 chair held by Professor Paul Leyhausen, of Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Behavioural Physiology

Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis)

photo by Sergio Cerrato via Pixabay

1982 chair held by Dr. Norman Myers, British conservation scientist

Caracal (Caracal caracal)

photo by Oliver Magritzer via Pixabay

1983-2000 chair held by Peter Jackson, British tiger specialist

Tiger (Panthera tigris)

photo by Josef Svoboda via Vecteezy

1984 began publication of newsletter Cat News

Leopard (Panthera pardus)

photo by Irma Bense via Pixabay

1996 published Wild Cats: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan; this book became the key reference for the natural history of each wild cat species

Margay (Leopardus wiedii)

photo by Josef Svoboda via Vecteezy

2000 Peter Jackson donated his library

2001-current co-chairs are Dr. Urs Breitenmoser & Dr. Christine Breitenmoser, Swiss carnivore specialists

Eurasian Lynx (Lynx lynx)

photo by Angela via Pixabay

2002 launched electronic Digital Cat Library

2005 launched Cat Specialist Group website

2017 published newsletter Cat News Special Issue 11, featuring revised taxonomy of Felidae (the cat family) “based on morphological, molecular, biogeographical and other evidence” (IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2024)

Clouded Leopard (Neofelis)

photo by Danny Nicholson via Pixabay

2023 launched updated version of Cat Specialist Group website

How to Support the Cat Specialist Group

“The Cat SG must raise its own funds – like all other specialist groups – and cannot count on subsidies or financial support from IUCN. Every donation goes directly into cat conservation work and is important to help saving the cats” (IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2024).

How to help

Join “Friends of the Cat Specialist Group”. This is basically an annual membership, but for the current calendar year in which you join, you get:

access to the Digital Cat Library with unlimited downloads
receive issues of the newsletter Cat News

Make a donation

receive the annual Cat SG’s activity report
receive issues of the newsletter Cat News

Go to: https://www.catsg.org/support

Note: currency on the Cat SG website is in CHF (Swiss franc), so the US dollar amount will vary depending on the exchange rate.

Newsletter: Cat News & Cat News Special Issue

Cat News is a subscription newsletter produced by the Cat SG. It’s about cat conservation around the world, composed of “scientific papers, articles, case studies and news items” (IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2024).

Details:

1 year subscription: 3 regular issues (spring, summer, fall) of Cat News, & 1 issue of Cat News Special Issue
each issue is 40+ pages
articles are submitted by cat specialists from all over the world, not only Cat SG members
articles are gathered from journals, magazines, the internet, as well as special solicited writings regarding topics of interest
each Cat News Special Issue may focus on: a specific species, cat species in a certain location, or a specific cat conservation theme

Some past issues are available online, to see the style of this newsletter: https://www.catsg.org/catnews

To fill out the subscription form: https://www.catsg.org/support

Note: currency on the Cat SG website is in CHF (Swiss franc), so the US dollar amount will vary depending on the exchange rate.

Digital Cat Library

The Cat SG also maintains the constantly increasing Digital Cat Library, composed of collected documents about wild cats. It contains thousands of documents. The goal is to make literature accessible, including “grey literature” (which isn’t published through traditional channels and thus hard to find).

You must be a member of “Friends of the Cat Specialist Group” to access PDF files.

Access Digital Cat Library: https://www.catsg.org/library

Learn More

https://www.catsg.org

Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)

photo by Kobus van Eeden via Pixabay

References

Angela. (2023). Lynx, Eurasian lynx, European lynx image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/lynx-eurasian-lynx-european-lynx-7787590/. Content License.

Bense, I. (2015). Leopard, animal, safari image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/leopard-animal-safari-mammal-1036455/. CC0.

Cerrato, S. (2021). Ocelot, feline, animals image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/ocelot-feline-animals-mini-jaguar-5878349/. Content License.

Freepik. Hand drawn tiger silhouette [Illustration]. Freepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/hand-drawn-tiger-silhouette_49275939.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=0&uuid=9f6880c9-04f3-4d56-a3fb-d33b8287f198&new_detail=true

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Catnews. https://www.catsg.org/catnews

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Classification. https://www.catsg.org/classification

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). History. https://www.catsg.org/history

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Home. https://www.catsg.org

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Library. https://www.catsg.org/library

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Structure. https://www.catsg.org/structure

IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. (2024). Support. https://www.catsg.org/support

Macrovector. Wild cats world map flat composition with map of world with icons of cat family felines vector illustration [Vector]. Freepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/wild-cats-world-map-flat-composition-with-map-world-with-icons-cat-family-felines-vector-illustration_37366111.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=30&uuid=93d981c7-0a1b-4d1c-8d38-10bd05b40ee5&new_detail=true

Magritzer. O. (2019). Animal, cat, caracal image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/animal-cat-caracal-desert-lynx-4247257/. Content License.

Nicholson, D. (2020). Cloud leopard, leopard, predator image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/cloud-leopard-leopard-predator-5228482/. Content License.

Presli, D.A. World map background with countries free vector [Vector]. Vecteezy. https://www.vecteezy.com/vector-art/20526947-world-map-background-with-countries

Svoboda, J. Photo of a Siberian tiger free photo [Photograph]. Vecteezy. https://www.vecteezy.com/photo/21164314-photo-of-a-siberian-tiger

Svoboda, J. Portrait of margay free photo [Photograph]. Vecteezy. https://www.vecteezy.com/photo/20501427-portrait-of-margay

Van Eeden, K. (2020). Cheetah, pet, feline image. Free for use [Photograph]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/cheetah-feline-wild-cat-fast-5529806/. Content License.

Wirestock. Vertical shot of a magnificent lion [Photograph]. Feepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/vertical-shot-magnificent-lion_8857637.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=19&uuid=565bd13f-e51e-4060-a1d0-07b3ba6cd926&new_detail=true