People have always been interested in Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. Hundreds of climbers try to reach the summit of Everest each year. But people aren’t the only ones interested in Everest, it seems. There is also an extensive wildlife presence here. Sometimes even species are discovered that we wouldn’t expect to see at this altitude. The breed called Pallas’s cat is one of them.
Although Pallas’s cat is not as cool as a lion or tiger, it is an extremely photogenic animal. They are similar in size to a house cat, with rounded ears, stocky bodies and a “sulky” facial expression. They seem to have adapted to the cold environments of Asia.
A group of researchers joined a National Geographic expedition to Mount Everest in 2019. During the trip, the team collected cat fecal samples from two different locations in Nepal’s mountain Sagarmatha National Park. The specimens come from regions at an altitude of 5,000 meters. It was later determined that these specimens belonged to Pallas cats. This suggests that members of a rare cat species live on Mount Everest.
The team published their findings in the winter 2022 issue of the journal Cat News. “Discovering evidence of this rare and extraordinary species at the top of the world is extraordinary,” biologist Tracie Seimon said in a statement. Seimon was one of the leaders of the expedition.
DNA analysis of the stool samples confirmed the existence of the cats and showed that they likely fed on ferrets and pikas (a small mammal). “The discovery of Pallas’s cat on Everest illuminates the rich biodiversity of this remote high mountain ecosystem and extends the known range of this species into eastern Nepal,” says Seimon.
Pallas cats are notable for their looks. “We hope that the validation of this new charismatic species will increase awareness and education about species diversity at this iconic World Heritage Site,” said Anton Seimon, a National Geographic explorer and co-author of the paper.
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