Felidae

Felidae is a family in the Linnaean taxonomic system, consisting of the carnivorous mammals popularly known as cats. It includes the domestic cat (Felis catus) as well as various wild species found around the world.

Quick Facts

Classification:

Kingdom: Animalia

Subkingdom: Bilateria

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Mammalia

Subclass: Eutheria

Order: Carnivora

Family: Felidae (cats)

Subfamily: Felinae (small- to medium-size cats)

• Genera: Acinonyx (cheetah); Caracal (caracal and African golden cat); Catopuma (bay cat and Asian golden cat); Felis (small cats, including domestic cat and several wild species); Herpailurus (jaguarundi; sometimes included within genus Puma instead); Leopardus (several small, wild cats native to Central and South America; nine species); Leptailurus (serval); Lynx (four species); Otocolobus (Pallas's cat); Pardofelis (marbled cat); Prionailurus (several small, wild cats native to Asia); Puma (cougar or puma)

Subfamily: Pantherinae

• Genera: Neofelis (clouded leopard and Sunda clouded leopard);Panthera (large cats: jaguar, leopard, lion, snow leopard, tiger)

Geographical location: Native to all land areas of the world except Antarctica, Australia, and some oceanic islands

Habitat: Forests and grassy plains

Gestational period: Large cats, 3 to 3.5 months; smaller cats, approximately 2 months

Life span: Potential longevity is probably around fifteen years for most species, but some have lived over thirty years.

Special anatomy: Large eyes with excellent night vision; jaws adapted to seizing and gripping prey, teeth designed for tearing and slicing flesh.

Catlike animals first appeared in fossil records approximately thirty million years ago. They shared typical anatomical features with later cats: long limbs ending in feet with retractable claws and skulls featuring slicing teeth and large, pointed canines. Some genera developed especially long, curved canine teeth, popularly called “sabers.”

About 10 million years ago, small cats classifiable as members of the genus Felis appeared, and by 3.5 million years ago, examples of the genus Panthera emerged. They did not immediately replace saber-toothed cats, whose fossils exist in deposits containing those of modern cats. The American saber-tooth, Smilodon fatalis, was still active toward the end of the last glaciation; some individuals were trapped in California’s Rancho La Brea tar pits as late as ten thousand years ago. An estimated four-fifths of all cat species are now extinct, often having disappeared during the same period that their favorite prey species also vanished.

Classification

Living Felidae are usually classified into fourteen genera containing around forty species. In 1916, R. I. Pocock, a taxonomist at the London Zoo, established the initial modern feline classification system using hyoid bones as the fundamental characteristic and the epihyal structure as distinguishing the two major cat genera originally identified: Panthera and Felis, or large cats and small cats. Pocock defined the genus Panthera as cats whose epihyal bone is replaced by a thin ligament; these animals normally vocalize by roaring rather than purring. Pocock placed cats whose epihyal develops as a normal bone within the genus Felis. They are able to purr continuously and usually do not roar.

Later studies, particularly those backed by genetic analysis, undermined the use of those specific distinctions for classification purposes. Felid taxonomy continues to be debated, and the number of recognized genera and species can vary among experts. However, Felidae continues to generally be divided into two extant groups, recognized as subfamilies: Pantherinae (which includes Panthera) and Felinae (which includes Felis).

Included in the genus Panthera are the large cats of Africa and Asia—the lion (P. leo), the tiger (P. tigris), the leopard (P. pardus), and the snow leopard (P. uncia)—as well as the American jaguar (P. onca). Also recognized within the subfamily Pantherinae is the genus Neofelis, which includes the two species of clouded leopard of Southeast Asia.

The subfamily Felinae usually includes more than thirty species. The genus Felis genus originally encompassed some twenty-eight species of small and medium-sized cats, but modern researchers typically recognize four to six living species (including the domestic cat, F. catus). Ten or eleven additional genera account for other members of the subfamily. Most of these animals are small cats, including the African golden cat (Profelis aurata), the ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), and many varieties of the European and African wildcat (Felis sylvestris). The Felinae subfamily also includes medium-sized cats such as the puma (Puma concolor; also known by many other common names, including mountain lion and cougar) and three species of lynx and the bobcat in the Lynx genus. The cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), which has several unique characteristics among felids, is also in this subfamily.

Feline Anatomy

Every cat, from the smallest domestic cat to the largest tiger, is physically equipped to become a successful predator—coat color, legs, claws, mouth, teeth, sight, hearing, and touch are all highly adapted for hunting and devouring prey.

Coat colors help cats blend into their environment while stalking prey. Most cats display a pattern of spots, stripes, or rosettes on a yellowish background, providing camouflage within forest or broken terrain. The lion’s uniform coat color blends into the grassy plains where it usually hunts. Lion cubs and the young of other species developing uniform coat color as adults are born with patterned coats, indicating that this was the primitive coloration of all cat species.

Cat legs are often long and muscular, permitting short, high-speed bursts when attacking prey. Cat claws are usually retractable, pulling inward when running, but extending outward when catching or holding victims. Although cheetah claws do not fully retract, the cat’s powerful muscles permit speeds of over sixty miles an hour in full pursuit. Claws and muscles make cats agile climbers who can scale trees when escaping enemies or hiding in ambush.

Cat teeth are adapted for seizing and cutting meat. Four elongated, pointed canine fangs grasp prey, and small, chisel-like incisors tear meat. The scissoring action of large carnassial teeth quickly slices meat from carcasses. Food tends to be swallowed in relatively unchewed chunks, then broken down in the digestive tract. Sharp-pointed, recurved papillae on the tongue help remove remnants of flesh from bones and are also used for drinking fluid and cleaning fur.

Many cats are nocturnal hunters, possessing sensory organs well adapted to low light. Their large eyes contain an extra sensitive reflective retinal layer, making cat eyes appear to glow in the dark, while pupils vary swiftly from fully open to tiny slits. Hearing is acute, and ears swivel easily to pinpoint sources of sound. Vibrissae, or whiskers, on the nose and head, permit cats to accurately locate obstacles and open paths, even when moving through darkness. The vibrissae also inform cats of the best position for gripping prey with their mouths.

Feline Behavior

Most cats are solitary hunters leading solitary lives, joining other adults only during mating. Kittens, however, may remain with their mother for up to two years, learning how to hunt before setting off on their own. Most cats live within habitats providing little stimulus for cooperative action. Tigers stalking prey in the jungle or snow leopards living in open country with highly dispersed prey find individual hunting most efficient. Occasionally, male cheetahs join in hunting coalitions of two to four animals, but such groupings are rare.

Both solitary and social cats, such as lions, are highly territorial—clawing trees, spraying urine, or leaving uncovered feces marking area boundaries; loud roars advertise the presence of claimants. Solitary females tend to establish ranges respected by each other. Males inhabit larger territories, usually overlapping those of two or more females, but face challenges from neighboring or interloping males.

Cats use three hunting strategies: moving slowly through their home range stalking, seizing, and killing prey; setting up ambushes near burrows or climbing trees and patiently waiting to pounce upon unsuspecting victims; and inadvertently stumbling upon prey while engaged in other activities, such as searching for water. Cats prefer to kill their quarry before eating. Small animals are bitten at the nape of the neck with canine teeth, severing spinal cords; biting the throat ruptures air passages. A lion sometimes strangles an antelope, clamping its mouth over the muzzle and suffocating its victim.

Lions live in groups called prides, consisting of up to a dozen individuals who aid each other in hunting. Females and their young compose the pride’s core; usually related to each other, they raise their cubs together. Two or three related adult males dominate and defend the pride, becoming the fathers of its cubs. When male cubs mature, they are generally driven off, but females may become permanent members of the pride. Group hunting by females, with occasional assistance from males on a difficult kill, is an economical procedure in open terrain containing abundant large prey.

Scientists studying feral cats—domestic cats returned to the wild—found two patterns of existence. Feral cats hunting widely dispersed prey tended to be solitary, occupying separate female and male territories. Cats gathered only at concentrated and stable food sources, such as garbage dumps and barns. In either case, a group of related females and their kittens formed the core unit; adults often aided each other raising the young. Female offspring might remain group members, but strange females were driven off. Some resident males were tolerated but faced challenges from interlopers seeking access to females. Several groups might occupy areas particularly rich in food. In all cases, resemblance to the social structure of lion prides was striking.

Adapted to widely varying environments, the Felidae remains one of the most successful animal families. A single species—the tiger—can be found ranging from the tropics to Siberia. However, the tiger and several other felids are increasingly endangered. Hunters seek many cats as trophies; the fur trade also values their striped and spotted skins. Big cats are particularly vulnerable, as expanding human settlements constrict the large ranges needed for successful predation.

Principal Terms

Carnassials: Pairs of large, cross-shearing teeth on each side of the jaw

Epihyal: A hyoid bone whose presence or absence determines whether a cat generally purrs or roars

Hyoid Bones: Series of connected bones at the base of the tongue

Papillae: Sharp, curved projections on the tongue

Vibrissae: Stiff hairs, projecting as feelers from the nose and the head

Bibliography

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Etnyre, E., et al. "Felidae (cats)." Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, animaldiversity.org/accounts/Felidae/. Accessed 11 July 2024.

Hunter, Luke. Wild Cats of the World. Bloomsbury, 2015.

Kitchener, A. C., et al. "A Revised Taxonomy of the Felidae." CATnews, IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group, 2017, repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/32616/A‗revised‗Felidae‗Taxonomy‗CatNews.pdf. Accessed 11 July 2024.

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