<- Back To Species Index

Ancestor: Felis lybica (African Wildcat)

Descendants 100,000 Yh:
Beach Cat
West Catlandian Mountain Cat
Wild Forest Cat
Sun Cat
Jumping Cat
Central Cat

Size: 46 cm length, 32 cm height
Weight: 4.5kg

Dietary Needs: Small vertebrate prey: Small mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and occasionally invertebrates such as insects.

Life Cycle: Cats are placental mammals. Female cats go into estrous several times a year.  Kittens take a little over a year to mature. Queens (their mothers) care for them until they become reproductively mature. Toms (the males who compete to mate with females) don't typically care for kittens.

Other: Cats are ambush predators with good hearing and nocturnal eyesight.  They prefer hunting at dawn and dusk. Retractable claws and fur between their paw pads allow them to tread silently. They stalk prey to get close undetected and have a quick sprint for the final pounce but are not built for long-distance pursuit. They are capable of leaping into the air as high as 2 metres for prey flying overhead or flushed out from the grass. They are generally very nimble and have good balance on narrow pathways such as thin tree branches. They usually hunt prey much smaller than themselves such as mice and songbirds and these will make up most of their diet, but they may occasionally hunt larger prey such as rabbits. Cats don't like carrion and eating it is a matter of desperation. They prefer kills that are still warm from life.