Abstract
Between 2003 and 2006, a live-trapping of European wildcats (Felis silvestris) was carried out in the Apennines (central Italy). Double-door tunnel cage traps were set along trap-lines. A box containing live quails as bait was securely attached to the side of each cage. Trapping was carried out in 8 sessions at a total of 60 trap-sites, mainly inside woods (65%). The distance between the traps ranged from 146 m to 907 m and the length of each trap-line ranged from 541 m to 2632 m. There were 16 captures of 11 different wildcats, the capture success rate being 1 wildcat/209 trap-days. Nine males and 2 females were caught, suggesting sex-biased trapping selection. In addition to wildcats, 20 non-target species were captured during the 8 sessions. No animal was injured by the traps and no wildcat was endangered by narcosis or handling. The technique proved to be effective for future field studies that envisage the radio-tracking of wildcats.
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