This TED Talk features fishing cat conservationist Ashwin-Nadu, recorded live at TED 2019.

That's my impersonation of a fishing cat, which actually sounds more like this.

Yeah. which actually sounds more like this. It's a cat that loves water, loves to fish, and lives in some of the most unique and valuable ecosystems on Earth,

the wetlands and mangrove forests of South and Southeast Asia.

Aren't they fishing awesome?

Fishing cats are one of about 40 species of wild cats,

like tigers and lions, only much smaller.

They're probably around twice the size of our average domestic cat. In Indonesia,

people call them Kuching Bakau, which literally translates to the cat of the mangroves,

but I like to call them the tigers of the mangroves. Now, we don't know fishing cats as well as we do

tigers, but what we've learned is that these cats can be a flagship species

to a globally important ecosystem

and a visual bait attached to a strong line for conservation.

Are you hooked yet?

Like many endangered species, fishing cats are threatened by habitat loss, mainly because of our

international demand for farmed fish and shrimp and the deforestation of nearly half the historic

mangrove cover in South and Southeast Asia. Mangroves, on the other hand, are much more than just habitat to the fishing cat.

They are home to a fantastic array of species, like jackals, turtles, shorebirds, and otters.

Mangroves also prevent soil erosion, and they can be the first line of defense between storm surges, tsunamis,

and the millions of people who live next to these forests for their day-to-day survival.

The fact that puts the icing on the cake, or the earth, I should say,

is that mangroves can store upwards of five to

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