Honey, Where's the Iriomote? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Japan

The Iriomote cat, a subspecies of the leopard cat, is found only on the tiny island of Iriomote, Japan. Since this is the only island where the species can be found, it has the distinction of having the smallest distribution of any wild cat species in the world.

Answer: A Yamamaya

The locals of the island of Iriomote know the cat by several names, including 'yamamaya' (note that it is a palindrome only if you call it "A yamamaya"). "Yamamaya" means 'the cat in the mountain'. They also call the cat a yamapikarya, meaning "that which shines on the mountains", and the mepisukarya, meaning "that which has flashing eyes".

These names are generally no longer in use, however, and the Japanese refer to it now as the "Iriomote-yameneko".

Answer: Critically Endangered

If there are less than 250 animals left in the wild, the number is declining, and consists of a single subpopulation, that animal becomes "critically endangered". Unfortunately for the Iriomote cat, it fits the bill, as it is constantly on the decline.

When the status was given, the Iriomote cat still lived in the wild, and therefore was not considered "extinct in the wild" (which means there are only animals in captivity of the species, and have no wild populations).

Answer: It's thicker

The Iriomote cat has a longer and narrower skull than that of a regular housecat, but it is similar to the leopard cat's skull. However, the Iriomote cat's skull is much thicker, which also means the cat's brain is much smaller. In the same sized skull, a leopard cat's brain weighs roughly 42 grams, but an Iriomote's brain weights only 30 grams.

Talk about being thick-skulled!

Answer: Crepuscular

The Iriomote cat prefers to spend its daytime sleeping in tree hollows or in caves. They become the most active during the twilight hours, which makes them crepuscular. They are often considered nocturnal, as they are active throughout the night; however, their main 'hours of operation', so to speak, is during the twilight hours.

Answer: There is no competition

Though all the mentioned carnivores can be found in Japan, none are found on Iriomote Island. In fact, the Iriomote cat is the only carnivore on the entire island, so it can choose from a wide variety of animals. Their diet includes fish, amphibians, birds, small mammals, rodents, and even young wild boar.


Sometimes, though, house cats do cause a bit of trouble for the Iriomote cat. Though house cats do not exclusively feed on the Iriomote's prey, they have given the Iriomote some hardships with finding food.

Answer: Plucking the feathers off

Most wild cats, should a bird be too big to swallow whole, will pluck the feathers off so it will go down more easily. The Iriomote cat, however, does things differently. Even if a bird appears too large for them, they will eat it whole anyway.

Answer: It holds prey in its mouth

Most wild cats snap the spinal column of their prey to render them immobile, and then it will eat the prey. Few others crush the trachea with their jaws, effectively suffocating prey (often used on much larger prey, by larger felines). The Iriomote, however, does neither.

Instead, it simply holds the prey in its mouth. The prey, of course, wants nothing more than to escape; after a while, the prey will simply stop moving, be it from fatigue, bleeding out (it's in the cat's teeth, remember), or any other reason.

Then the Iriomote feasts.

Answer: Iriomote crossing

Perhaps we are familiar with deer crossing signs, kangaroo crossings, zebra crossings, and the like, but perhaps we are unfamiliar with Iriomote crossings. Yes, on the island, there are signs on roads warning motorists of Iriomotes. In fact, one major reason for the decline of the wild cat is due to road accidents between a car and a small cat. A car usually wins such a battle.

Answer: Yamapikarya

A larger cat supposedly lives on the island of Iriomote, though no records show it exists for certain. It is often referred to as a yamapikarya (used to describe both the Iriomote and the cryptid), kunzumaya, or toutouyaa. Like most cryptid animals of the world, stories have been told of the yamapikarya, but nobody has been able to prove these stories with remains of the cat; not even a photo. Because of its larger size, the cat would also need a larger habitat to live in. Because of the small size of Iriomote island, it is believed that only ten of these larger cats, should they exist, would be able to live on the island at any one time. If there were only ten animals on the island, it would be fairly easy to miss; very elusive indeed.