Wildlife Guide · South Asia & Southeast Asia — wetlands, mangroves and marsh

Fishing Cat

Prionailurus viverrinus (Bennett, 1833) — family Felidae

A cat that swims on purpose, hooks fish with its claws, and is losing its habitat faster than surveys can track.

Vulnerable — wetland loss is the primary threat across South and Southeast Asia

Fishing cat with olive-grey spotted coat standing at the edge of a mangrove wetland with one paw in shallow water

Image: AI-generated educational wildlife portrait — World Animal Rescue Network · AI visualisation, not a photograph

In brief

The fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) is a Vulnerable wetland felid of South and Southeast Asia that swims and dives to catch fish, with partially webbed toes and a stocky build adapted to marsh, mangrove and reedbed habitat.

By the WARN Research & Conservation TeamChecked against IUCN Red List & CITES sourcesLast updated July 2026

The fishing cat is a medium-sized wild felid of South and Southeast Asian wetlands — one of the few cats that takes to water by choice rather than necessity. It swims well, dives after fish, and has partially webbed toes that help it move through marsh and mangrove. Its coat is olive-grey with dark spots and stripes, and its build is stockier than most small cats, closer to a small leopard cat in size but heavier in the frame. The name is accurate. Fishing cats eat fish, frogs, crustaceans and water birds, and they hunt at the water's edge and in shallow channels. They will also take rodents and livestock on occasion, which creates conflict with people in some areas. But the binding threat is not retaliation — it is the rapid loss of the wetlands they require. Fishing cats are also one of the most poorly known Asian felids. They are secretive, active mainly at night, and occupy habitat that is being converted faster than it can be surveyed. What is documented — from radio-telemetry studies in India, Sri Lanka and Cambodia — confirms a wetland specialist whose survival depends entirely on the persistence of marsh, mangrove and reedbed ecosystems across a region that is losing them at extraordinary speed.

Vulnerable

IUCN status — wetland loss is the main driver

Webbed toes

Partial webbing helps movement through water

Swims

One of the few cats that enters water deliberately to hunt

~90%

Of global wetlands lost since 1700 — habitat fishing cats depend on

Figures sourced from IUCN Red List — Prionailurus viverrinus, CITES Appendices .

Fishing Cat: Quick Facts

Vital statistics and key facts about the Fishing Cat
Weight	5–16 kg
Habitat	Wetlands — marsh, mangrove, reed swamp
Range	South and Southeast Asia
Swimming	Enters water deliberately to hunt
Toes	Partially webbed
Diet	Fish, frogs, crustaceans, birds, rodents
Main threat	Wetland loss and drainage

Scientific Classification

Scientific classification of the Fishing Cat
Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Mammalia
Order	Carnivora
Family	Felidae
Genus	Prionailurus
Species	Prionailurus viverrinus

Conservation Status

IUCN Status: Vulnerable
Population: Unknown; suspected declining across most of the range
Trend: Decreasing
Assessed: 2016
CITES: Appendix II

Wetland drainage and conversion to aquaculture are the dominant threats. The species has declined or disappeared from many areas where wetlands have been lost.

Did you know?

Fishing cat claws do not fully retract — which may help them grip slippery fish, making them one of the few cats whose claws are partly deployed even at rest.

Key Facts: Fishing Cat

Fishing cats are wetland specialists of South and Southeast Asia, listed Vulnerable by the IUCN.
They swim and dive to catch fish, frogs and crustaceans — unusual behaviour among felids.
Partially webbed toes and a stocky build are adaptations for marsh and mangrove life.
Wetland drainage, aquaculture expansion and mangrove clearance are the primary threats.
They occasionally prey on poultry and fish stocks, creating local conflict with people.
Population declines are suspected across most of the range as wetland area shrinks.

A cat that hunts in water

Most cats avoid water. Fishing cats enter it deliberately. They swim across channels, wade through reedbeds, and dive to grab fish — sometimes using their front paws in a scooping motion that resembles a bear's fishing technique. The claws do not fully retract, which may help grip slippery prey and is one of the few felid adaptations where partially exposed claws are an advantage rather than a wear concern. Webbing between the toes is partial rather than extensive, but enough to improve propulsion in soft mud and shallow water. The coat is dense and water-resistant, shedding moisture quickly after a swim. Combined with a muscular, low-slung body, the fishing cat is built for a habitat — marsh, mangrove, reed swamp — that most felids cannot exploit at all. Fishing cats also hunt on land. Rodents, birds and small mammals are taken from the wetland margins, and in some areas poultry and fish from aquaculture ponds bring the cats into direct contact with people. But the core of the diet is aquatic, and the core of the habitat requirement is permanent or seasonal standing water with vegetative cover — a combination that is disappearing across tropical Asia faster than any single species can adapt.

Wetlands under pressure

The fishing cat's problem is habitat specificity in a habitat category that is disappearing fast. South and Southeast Asia have lost a large proportion of their original wetlands to drainage for agriculture, aquaculture ponds, urban expansion and mangrove clearance for coastal development. The Mekong Delta, the Ganges-Brahmaputra floodplain and the coastal wetlands of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have all been transformed within a single human generation. A fishing cat can use modified landscapes at the margins — irrigation channels, rice paddies, suburban ponds — but it cannot persist where wetland connectivity is gone entirely. Radio-telemetry studies in India and Sri Lanka show that fishing cats require home ranges with access to multiple water bodies and vegetative cover; a single isolated pond surrounded by cropland is not sufficient. The IUCN Vulnerable listing reflects suspected population declines across most of the range, driven primarily by this habitat loss rather than by direct persecution, though retaliatory killing after poultry depredation occurs locally. The species has already disappeared from many areas where wetlands have been converted, and the rate of conversion shows no sign of slowing across much of South and Southeast Asia. Restoring even small wetland fragments can support fishing cats if prey and cover remain.

Conflict at the water's edge

Fishing cats occasionally take poultry, fish from aquaculture ponds and small livestock, which brings them into conflict with people living near wetlands. In Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka, retaliatory killing and road mortality near fragmented wetland patches are documented. A fishing cat caught raiding a fish pond at night is often killed on sight. Conflict mitigation — securing poultry at night in predator-proof enclosures, compensating documented losses, and maintaining wetland buffer zones around villages — reduces killing pressure where it has been tried. But conflict is secondary to habitat loss: a cat that still has intact marsh can feed on fish and rodents without entering a chicken coop; a cat whose marsh has been converted to aquaculture has nowhere else to go and will take whatever food is available. The overlap between fishing cat habitat and human food production is not accidental. Wetlands are productive land, and the same water that supports fishing cats supports rice, fish farming and grazing. Resolving the conflict requires recognising that wetland conservation and human livelihood are not opposing goals — intact wetlands provide flood control, fisheries and water filtration alongside fishing cat habitat.

Why wetland cats are indicator species

Fishing cats require connected wetland systems with permanent or seasonal water, vegetative cover and prey. Their presence indicates a functioning wetland food web — fish, amphibians, rodents and birds in sufficient density to support a mid-sized predator. When fishing cats disappear from a wetland complex, it is a signal that the ecosystem has lost either its water, its prey or its connectivity. Protecting fishing cats means protecting wetlands, which deliver flood control, water filtration, carbon storage and fisheries far beyond the cat's own ecological role. In the Chilika Lake region of India and the Haor wetlands of Bangladesh, fishing cat conservation projects have used the species as an umbrella for broader wetland protection — a strategy that works because the cat's requirements align with the wetland's ecological functions. The Vulnerable listing is a warning, not a final verdict. Fishing cats persist in protected areas and in modified landscapes where wetland fragments remain. But the trajectory across the range is downward, and the habitat driving that decline — tropical and subtropical wetlands — is among the most threatened on Earth. Without wetland protection, the fishing cat follows the same path as the wetland itself: fragmented, drained and eventually absent.

What WARN Does

WARN publishes free, sourced species education for animals whose habitat is being erased faster than the species can be assessed. The fishing cat is a wetland indicator in a region losing wetlands at extraordinary speed — the kind of story free public education should tell clearly.

If this guide helps you understand wildlife and the pressures it faces, a gift to WARN supports habitat protection and free public education in our partner countries.

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How can I help save the fishing cat?

There are three practical things that make a real difference for the fishing cat — and the first is the one that funds everything else.

Fund frontline rescue

Back the partner-led teams, veterinary care and protection that reach fishing cats where the need is greatest — WARN channels donations straight to that work.

Ease the pressures

Avoid the wildlife trade and souvenirs, never buy wild animals as pets, and choose sustainable, habitat-friendly products — the threats behind the fishing cat's decline fall when demand does.

Spread the word

Share accurate, sourced information about the fishing cat. Wider awareness is what turns concern into lasting protection.

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Fishing Cat: Frequently Asked Questions

How can I help save the fishing cat?

The most effective way to help the fishing cat is to fund the frontline rescue and habitat protection that keeps the species alive — WARN channels donations to partner-led teams working where the need is greatest. You can also ease the pressures behind its decline by avoiding the wildlife trade and souvenirs, never buying wild animals as pets, and choosing sustainable products, and by sharing accurate information to build wider support. See the ways to help below, or support WARN's Support Habitat Protection.

Do fishing cats really fish?

Yes. They swim, wade and dive to catch fish, frogs, crustaceans and water birds. They sometimes scoop fish with their front paws. Fish and aquatic prey are a core part of the diet, not an occasional supplement.

Why are fishing cats Vulnerable?

Primarily because of wetland loss. Drainage for agriculture, aquaculture expansion, mangrove clearance and urban development are removing the marsh and mangrove habitat they depend on across South and Southeast Asia.

Can fishing cats swim?

Yes, and they do so deliberately to hunt. Partially webbed toes, a dense water-resistant coat and a stocky build all support movement through water and soft mud.

Where do fishing cats live?

In wetlands across South and Southeast Asia — marsh, mangrove, reed swamp and the margins of rivers and lakes. They also use modified habitats such as irrigation channels and rice paddies where wetland connectivity remains.

Do fishing cats attack livestock?

They occasionally take poultry and fish from aquaculture ponds, which creates local conflict. Retaliatory killing occurs, but habitat loss is the primary threat across the range.

How big is a fishing cat?

Medium-sized for a wild cat — roughly twice the weight of a domestic cat, with a stocky, muscular build suited to wetland movement rather than speed on open ground.

What do fishing cats eat?

Fishing cats eat fish, frogs, crustaceans, water birds and rodents, hunting at the water's edge and in shallow channels by swimming and diving. Partially webbed toes help them move through marsh and mangrove. They weigh 5–16 kg with a stocky, olive-grey spotted build. Fish and aquatic prey are core to the diet, not an occasional supplement. Wetland drainage across South and Southeast Asia is the primary threat to this Vulnerable species.

Are fishing cats dangerous?

Fishing cats rarely threaten people but occasionally take poultry and fish from aquaculture ponds, creating local conflict. Retaliatory killing occurs, though habitat loss is the primary threat across the range. They are medium-sized wild felids — weighing 5–16 kg — that enter water deliberately to hunt, unlike most cats. Partial webbing and a dense water-resistant coat support movement through marsh, mangrove and reed swamp across South and Southeast Asia.

How long do fishing cats live?

A precise wild lifespan for fishing cats is not firmly established in the sources cited on this guide. The fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) is a Vulnerable wetland felid of South and Southeast Asia that swims and dives to catch fish, with partially webbed toes and a stocky build adapted to marsh, mangrove and reedbed habitat. Where longevity figures appear in the literature they vary by region, sex and whether animals are wild or captive.

Sources & References

Population figures, conservation status and biological facts on this page are drawn from authoritative scientific and intergovernmental sources.

Terms used on this page

Plain-English definitions, from our wildlife and conservation glossary.

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