🧬 The Felid Wiki — 3,000 research summaries

This influential study measured the audible frequency range of the domestic cat using behavioral methods, establishing that cats hear across an exceptionally broad span of frequencies. The work docume…

Rickye S. Heffner, Henry E. Heffner · Hearing Research · 1985

This early genetic study examined the familiar but variable reaction of cats to catnip and proposed that responsiveness is an inherited trait. By observing the catnip response across cats and consider…

Neil B. Todd · Journal of Heredity · 1962

This comparative study examined taste-receptor genes across a range of carnivorous mammals and found widespread loss of taste capabilities tied to diet. Building on the earlier discovery that cats lac…

Peihua Jiang, Jesusa Josue, Xia Li, et al. · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 2012

This landmark genetic study explained the long-noted fact that cats show little interest in sweet foods. The researchers found that cats carry a defective, non-functional version of Tas1r2, one of the…

Xia Li, Weihua Li, Hong Wang, et al. · PLoS Genetics · 2005

As cats age, many experience a decline in hearing, a feline counterpart to the presbycusis seen in aging humans. This overview surveys age-related hearing loss in senior cats, which can reduce sensiti…

When hunting by ear, a cat actively orients its pinnae toward a sound source to maximize gain and sharpen localization before striking. This overview surveys how pinna aiming integrates with the broad…

When cats rub against each other, a behavior called allorubbing, they mingle their scents and may create a shared group odor. This overview surveys allorubbing and related allomarking behaviors, in wh…

Cats evaluate food partly through the tastes of specific amino acids, which signal protein content and palatability. This overview surveys how feline taste preferences are shaped by amino acids, with…

Cats possess paired anal sacs that produce a strongly scented secretion thought to contribute to individual odor identity and communication. This overview surveys what is known about these secretions,…

The prominent whiskers on a cat's muzzle, the mystacial vibrissae, are arranged in an orderly grid of rows and columns on each side of the face. This overview surveys their typical number and layout,…

Newborn kittens cannot hear well because their ear canals are closed at birth, and hearing develops over the following weeks. This overview surveys feline auditory development, beginning with the open…

Beyond anatomy and genetics, behavioral tests reveal how keenly cats can detect and discriminate odors. This overview surveys studies and observations of feline olfactory acuity, including the use of…

Establishing that an animal sees color requires showing it can discriminate hues independent of brightness, a demanding behavioral test. This overview surveys studies that trained cats to choose color…

Localizing sound in the horizontal plane depends on comparing the signals reaching the two ears, and cats exploit these binaural cues effectively. This overview surveys interaural time and level diffe…

The physics of how a falling cat rights itself without any initial rotation has fascinated scientists for over a century. This overview surveys the biomechanics of the maneuver, in which the cat bends…

A common interpretation of bitter taste is that it warns animals away from toxic or harmful compounds, and this protective role likely applies to cats. This overview surveys how feline bitter sensitiv…

Cats retain the ability to taste bitter compounds, supported by a family of bitter taste receptor genes. This overview surveys what is known about the feline bitter receptor repertoire and its likely…

In addition to facial whiskers, cats possess carpal vibrissae on the underside of the wrists, or carpi, of the forelegs. This overview surveys these lesser-known tactile hairs and their proposed role…

The amount of felinine in cat urine is regulated in part by an enzyme called cauxin, which is excreted in the urine and influences the production of this scent precursor. This overview surveys the rol…

Tactile information from the whiskers is integrated with other senses in brain regions that coordinate orienting and targeting, including midbrain structures involved in directing attention and moveme…

As cats age, their perception of taste, together with smell, can change in ways that affect food acceptance. This overview surveys age-related changes in feline taste and their interaction with declin…

The tapetum lucidum is widespread among nocturnal and crepuscular vertebrates, but its structure varies, and comparing forms illuminates how cats fit the broader pattern. This overview surveys differe…

How much better do cats really see in the dark than people? This overview surveys behavioral and physiological comparisons, which generally credit cats with the ability to detect light at intensities…

Dogs are famed for their sense of smell, and comparing them with cats puts feline olfaction in perspective. This overview surveys estimates that cats possess a large but somewhat smaller repertoire of…

Silver vine and catnip both elicit the characteristic feline rubbing and rolling response, but they differ in potency and in which cats they affect. This overview surveys comparisons showing that silv…

The kitten visual cortex has a critical period during which experience strongly shapes its wiring, a concept established largely through feline research. This overview surveys the idea of the critical…

Dark adaptation is the process by which an eye recovers sensitivity after exposure to bright light, as pigment regenerates and neural gain rises. This overview surveys what is known about the time cou…

A cat's sense of smell can diminish with age, and because olfaction strongly influences feline appetite, this decline can affect eating. This overview surveys age-related changes in feline olfaction a…

Ambush predators must judge the distance to prey accurately before striking, and pupil shape can influence the depth cues available. This overview surveys the proposal that vertical-slit pupils create…

Whiskers respond not only to direct contact but to subtle movements of air, allowing cats to sense nearby objects and motion without touching them. This overview surveys how vibrissae detect air curre…