Research overview: niche conservatism and adaptive capacity in felids

Whether species can evolve or behaviorally adjust their climate niche fast enough to keep pace with change is central to predicting their fate. This overview surveys the concept of niche conservatism, the tendency of species to retain ancestral climate tolerances, and what it implies for cats facing rapid warming. It reviews the limited evidence on felid adaptive capacity, the role of behavioral plasticity versus genetic adaptation, and how generation time constrains evolutionary responses for large, slow-breeding carnivores. The synthesis frames adaptive capacity as the great uncertainty in climate projections, explaining why models that assume fixed niches may overstate risk if species can adjust, or understate it if niches are conserved and change outpaces any possible response.