Research overview: leopard cat hybridization and the Bengal breed

The leopard cat is the wild ancestor of the domestic Bengal cat breed, and this overview reviews the biology and conservation implications of that connection. Hybridization between leopard cats and domestic cats, deliberately undertaken to create the Bengal breed, produces fertile offspring after the first generations and demonstrates the close relationship between the species. In the wild, contact between leopard cats and free-ranging domestic cats raises concerns about disease transmission and genetic introgression. Studying these interactions is valuable for understanding the leopard cat genetics and for evaluating whether hybridization and disease from domestic cats pose conservation risks, a question relevant to many small wild cats living near human settlements where domestic cats are abundant.