# Sand cat (*Felis margarita*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/sand-cat  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The sand cat (Felis margarita), also called the sand dune cat, is a mammal of the family Felidae in the order Carnivora. It is a medium-sized, nocturnal and terrestrial carnivore, with an adult body mass of 2.5 kg and up to 2.75 kg. Its lifespan is given as 13.7 years, up to 13.9 years, and the IUCN Red List classes it as Least Concern, not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 2.53 kg – 2.75 kg |
| Length | 39 cm – 52 cm |
| Lifespan | 13.7 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Main food | vertebrates |
| Habitat | desert |
| Gestation | 67 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 4.5 |
| Age at maturity | 9 months |
| Litters or clutches a year | 2 |
| Reproduction | Live birth |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Carnivora
- family: Felidae
- genus: Felis
- species: *Felis margarita* Loche, 1858

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the sand cat?

The sand cat is a mammal of the family Felidae, subfamily Felinae, in the order Carnivora.

### How heavy is a sand cat?

An adult sand cat has a body mass of 2.5 kg, with values up to 2.75 kg reported.

### What does the sand cat eat?

The sand cat is a carnivore.

### Is the sand cat endangered?

No. The IUCN Red List classes the sand cat as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a sand cat live?

The sand cat's lifespan is given as 13.7 years, with values up to 13.9 years reported.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Sand cat (Felis margarita). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/sand-cat