The kittens, aged between six to eight weeks old, were spotted by a big cat organisation called Panthera, who spent around an hour taking images of the kittens before radio-collaring an adult female believed to be their mother. The team, headed by biologists Grégory Breton and Dr Alexander Sliwa, noticed the kittens as they drove back to camp in the Moroccan Sahara in April this year. Spotting three pairs of eyes glowing in the darkness, the researchers couldn’t believe their luck when they realised what they’d found.

“Finding these kittens was astonishing,” said Breton, managing director of Panthera France. “We believe this was the first time researchers ever documented wild sand cat kittens in their African range.”

Sand cats are the only species of cat that lives exclusively in the desert. They can be found in North Africa, The Middle East, and Central Asia, but as the research team discovered, actually locating them is incredibly difficult due to their extraordinary ability to evade detection. Their sand-colored coats makes them hard to spot, and their furry paws mean they don’t leave any footprints in the sand. They only travel under cover of darkness and they always clear up after themselves, so the fact that the team were able to capture the amazing footage below is nothing short of remarkable. Scroll down to see for yourself. And no, before you ask, you cannot keep them as pets.

#1. Sand cat kittens

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

Image credits: Grégory Breton

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