🧬 The Felid Wiki — 3,000 research summaries

Deafness is strongly associated with the dominant white coat gene in cats, particularly in blue-eyed white individuals, and this overview surveys the phenomenon and its biology. It examines how the wh…

The mackerel-striped pattern is ancestral in cats, while the swirled blotched tabby is a recent variant produced by mutations in the Taqpep gene. This overview examines how ancient DNA and historical…

Feral cats have been implicated in numerous extinctions of island species, and this overview surveys the documented cases and patterns. It examines examples of birds, mammals and reptiles lost or driv…

Because the domestic cat and its wild relatives remain fully interfertile, hybridization is a persistent conservation concern, especially for the European wildcat, Felis silvestris silvestris, in plac…

Successive improvements to the domestic cat reference genome have made the species a tractable model for genetics and biomedicine. This overview surveys the development of cat genome assemblies and as…

Cats convey much of their emotional state through body posture, ear position and tail movements, and this overview surveys how these visual signals are described and interpreted. It covers the spectru…

How much and how kittens are handled early in life affects their friendliness toward people, and this overview surveys the experimental evidence. It examines studies manipulating the amount of human h…

Fitting cats with a bell is a common, low-cost attempt to warn prey and reduce hunting success, and this overview surveys the evidence for its effectiveness. It examines studies comparing prey capture…

Beyond discriminating emotional expressions, cats may absorb or respond to their owners' emotional states, a phenomenon related to emotional contagion. This overview surveys research probing whether c…

The management of free-roaming cats raises ethical questions about the welfare of cats, wildlife and the values at stake, and this overview surveys the normative debate surrounding trap-neuter-return.…

Synthetic analogues of feline facial pheromones are marketed to reduce stress, marking and conflict, and this overview surveys the evidence for their effectiveness. It examines controlled studies and…

Cats have a blood group system with important clinical consequences, and this overview surveys feline blood types and their genetic and practical dimensions. It covers the main AB system types A, B an…

Cats deposit secretions from facial glands when rubbing objects, and these are thought to contain pheromone fractions associated with familiarity and reduced anxiety. This overview surveys the science…

Feline idiopathic cystitis, a common cause of lower urinary tract signs in cats, is increasingly understood as a stress-related condition with systemic dimensions, sometimes termed Pandora syndrome. T…

Removing feral cats from islands has produced some of conservation's clearest predator-management successes, and this overview surveys eradication programs and their outcomes. It examines campaigns th…

Free-roaming cats intersect with human health through zoonotic disease, and this overview surveys the public-health dimensions of feral and community cat populations. It examines concerns including ra…

Following another's gaze can indicate sensitivity to where attention is directed, and researchers have asked whether cats follow human gaze. This overview surveys the comparatively sparse evidence in…

Cats vary widely in how friendly and social they are with people, and research has sought the sources of this variation. This overview surveys evidence that feline sociability toward humans arises fro…

Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, population geneticists used the visible coat-colour and pattern alleles of free-roaming cats, such as the orange, non-agouti, dilute and white-spotting variants…

Rubbing is a conspicuous affiliative behaviour in cats, directed at other cats, people and objects, and this overview surveys its forms and functions. It covers allorubbing between cats, in which anim…

Understanding how feral cats use space is central to managing them and assessing their impact, and this overview surveys research on feral cat home ranges and movements. It examines tracking studies s…

House soiling is among the most common behaviour problems leading to relinquishment of cats, and this overview surveys its causes and management. It distinguishes urine marking, a communicative sprayi…

Just as people differ in attachment styles toward other humans, those styles may shape how they relate to companion animals. This overview surveys research linking owners' adult attachment orientation…

How people interpret cat purrs is itself a subject of study, given the role of purring in cat-human communication. This overview surveys research on human listeners' responses to different purrs, incl…

Closed breeding populations and selection for type can erode genetic diversity, and this overview surveys research on inbreeding and diversity across cat breeds. It examines studies measuring heterozy…

Like other vocalizations, purrs vary among individual cats, and this overview surveys what is known about that variation and its possible functions. It examines acoustic measurements of fundamental fr…

Selective breeding concentrates not only desired traits but also disease-causing mutations, and this overview surveys inherited disorders documented across cat breeds. It covers conditions such as hyp…

Aggression between cats sharing a home is a frequent and distressing problem, and this overview surveys its forms, causes and management. It examines types of inter-cat aggression including territoria…

The dominant model of purring posits a neural oscillator, or central pattern generator, that drives rhythmic contraction of the laryngeal muscles to modulate airflow. This overview surveys the evidenc…

Walking cats on a harness and leash is promoted as a way to give indoor cats safe outdoor stimulation, and this overview surveys what is known about the practice. It examines welfare considerations in…