Research overview: cat diet studies through scat and stomach analysis

Understanding what cats actually eat in the wild relies heavily on analyzing scats and stomach contents, and this overview surveys that body of dietary research. It examines how researchers identify prey remains such as bones, fur, feathers and scales to reconstruct feral and free-roaming cat diets across habitats, revealing diets dominated by small mammals but including many birds, reptiles, invertebrates and carrion. The survey discusses how diet composition varies with region, season and prey availability, the prominence of reptiles in arid zones, and the implications for which wildlife are most at risk. It also covers methodological strengths and biases, such as differential digestion of prey types, framing scat and stomach analysis as a foundational method for quantifying the predatory ecology of cats and informing predation impact estimates.