Guardians of the Forgotten Felines: Anjallee Sivarajah's Mission with SCAR
Forgotten Felines of Sri Lanka
In the shadow of Sri Lanka’s celebrated leopards roam three lesser-known but equally remarkable felines – the fishing cat, the rusty-spotted cat, and the jungle cat.
These elusive creatures navigate an increasingly challenging landscape, their stories often untold and their struggles unseen. For wildlife biologist Anjallee Sivarajah, these forgotten wildcats have become the focus of an inspiring conservation journey.
“My devotion to wildlife conservation began in Wasgamuwa National Park,” Anjallee explains. “I was studying human-elephant conflict, but I soon realised that many smaller species were being overlooked.” This realisation led her to Small Cat Advocacy and Research (SCAR), which since 2017 has been writing a new chapter in Sri Lanka’s conservation story. Their mission: to protect and preserve the island’s small wild cats through a blend of scientific inquiry, community partnership, and passionate advocacy.
Urban Cats Among Us
As a wildlife biologist with SCAR’s Urban Fishing Cat Conservation Project, Anjallee works in one of the organisation’s most fascinating initiatives. “Colombo is the only large city in the world with a known population of fishing cats,” she notes with pride. “These remarkable creatures have adapted to life in urban wetlands, using canals, ponds, and paddy fields as their highways and hunting grounds.”
Anya Ratnayaka (Project Lead), Anjallee and the team work tirelessly to understand these urban wildcats. “By monitoring fishing cat populations, studying their diet through scat analysis, and tracking their movements through GPS collaring, we’re piecing together their untold stories,” she shares. This research is vital, but equally important is SCAR’s collaboration with local communities and government agencies like the Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation and the Department of Wildlife Conservation to ensure these urban wetlands remain protected.
Beyond Colombo, with Project Lead Ashan Thudugala, SCAR’s Save Fishing Cats Conservation Project focuses on the hill country, where fishing cats face different challenges. “Human-carnivore conflict is a significant issue in these areas,” Anjallee explains. “We’re not just studying the problem – we’re engaging with communities to find solutions that work for both people and wildlife.”
What Anjallee finds most rewarding about SCAR’s approach is their commitment to citizen science. “Our Small Wild Cat Distribution and Roadkill Monitoring project invites everyone to participate in conservation,” she says. “When people report sightings or roadkill incidents, they’re helping us identify critical areas for protection while becoming personally invested in the cause.”
Renewal Through Research
In addition to her work with fishing cats, Anjallee leads her own research initiative in southern Sri Lanka. “The Regenerated Forest Mammal Monitoring Project is particularly close to my heart,” she admits. “In Ahangama, we’re studying how mammal communities return to naturally regenerated forests. It’s proof that conservation isn’t just about preservation – it’s about renewal.”
These regenerated forests provide vital habitat for wildlife while offering surrounding communities benefits like improved air quality and water regulation. “When we protect these ecosystems, everyone wins,” Anjallee observes. “These small wild cats aren’t just beautiful creatures – they’re indicators of environmental health that benefit all life on the island.”
After five years as a wildlife guide, Anjallee has found her true calling in research and conservation. “Working with SCAR has allowed me to combine scientific rigour with genuine community engagement,” she reflects. “Conservation is about people as much as it is about wildlife.”
Through her unwavering dedication and that of her colleagues at SCAR, Anjallee has become more than a biologist – she is a storyteller illuminating the lives of creatures that thrive in the margins, a guardian protecting Sri Lanka’s natural heritage, and an architect designing a future where wildcats and humans flourish together.
In a world where conservation narratives often focus on charismatic megafauna, Anjallee and SCAR remind us that sometimes the most important stories come in smaller packages. The fishing cat navigating Colombo’s urban waterways, the rusty-spotted cat slipping through highland forests, the jungle cat patrolling the boundary between wilderness and farmland – these are the untold tales of Sri Lanka’s wild heart, and through Anjallee’s work, they’ll be told for generations to come.
With a BSc in Wildlife and Conservation Biology and a heart firmly rooted in the wilderness, Anjallee Sivarajah transforms passion into purpose. Her journey began in Wasgamuwa National Park studying human-elephant conflict before dedicating herself to Small Cat Advocacy and Research. Now a wildlife biologist with the Urban Fishing Cat Conservation Project, she balances five years of wildlife guiding experience with pioneering research on terrestrial mammals in Ahangama’s regenerated forests.