Fishing cats (Prionailurus viverrinus) are medium-sized wildcats found in the wetlands of South and Southeast Asia. Listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, they\u2019re known to live mainly on a diet of fish, small birds, insects and reptiles.<\/p>\n
Fishing cat expert Tiasa Adhya said Santra\u2019s photograph may be the first documentation of the cat catching a monitor lizard (Varanus spp.), a large-sized prey.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a great find,\u201d Adhya said. \u201cThe fishing cat is known to be a top predator in wetland ecosystems. This emphasizes that the monitor lizard, a powerful reptile with a strong tail and nearly the same size as a fishing cat, is among its prey.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adhya likened the interaction to jaguars (Panthera onca) hunting caimans<\/a> in the Pentanal wetlands of South America. \u201cJaguars have a tendency to catch aquatic prey including caiman,\u201d Adhya said. \u201cSo, a fishing cat killing an adult monitor lizard is a similar natural history moment.\u201d<\/p>\n Another ecologist who has studied fishing cats, Samrat Chakraborty, agreed that Santra\u2019s photograph is \u201ca very uncommon incident.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have studied multiple papers on fishing cats and their diet but monitor lizards never featured on their menu,\u201d he said. \u201cIn fact, in a 1988 paper, there is mention of fishing cats scavenging on carcass of a cow in Rajasthan. But I have never found any mention of monitor lizards.\u201d<\/p>\n Chakraborty added that fishing cats face competition for fish from animals like otters, which may have led this individual to opportunistically hunt the monitor lizard instead. \u201cThe terrain of [the Sundarbans] is muddy and it is not easy to drag a prey quickly there. An adult monitor lizard is a powerful reptile and the fact that the fishing cat defeated it in this carnal battle showed how good hunters, cats can be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Wildlife photographer Sudipta Chakraborty, who also photographed the same interaction as Santra that day in July, agreed that the fishing cat may have targeted the monitor lizard after days of failing to catch other prey. \u201cSo, being hungry it took a chance with the monitor lizard. This is not going to happen regularly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Read the full story by Nabarun Guha here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Banner image: A fishing cat photographed feeding on a monitor lizard near Pirkhali, a part of Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, in the Indian Sundarbans. Image courtesy of Soumyadip Santra.<\/p>\n ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/fishingcatmonitorlizard.jpg\")
A fishing cat photographed feeding on a monitor lizard near Pirkhali, a part of Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, in the Indian Sundarbans. Image courtesy of Soumyadip Santra.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n