Research overview: the bay cat lineage of Southeast Asia

The bay cat lineage comprises three Asian cats: the Asian golden cat, the bay cat of Borneo, and the marbled cat. This overview surveys the genetic evidence establishing this lineage as one of the eight major felid groups, the close relationship between the rare bay cat and the Asian golden cat, and the more divergent position of the marbled cat. It discusses the difficulty of studying these secretive forest species, the limited genetic samples available especially for the endemic and elusive bay cat, and how molecular phylogenetics placed these poorly known cats within the broader family tree, highlighting Southeast Asia as a center of felid diversity.