#felis lybica

[tigerleopardlion]

Southern African Wildcat | Richard Jessnitz

[snototter]

An African wildcat (Felis lybica) relaxes in a tree in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa

by jaffles

[mirtadraws]

Some of my favourites from Inktober 2023. I decided to draw 1 cat species per day, in a couple of different styles. You can find all of them under the Inktober tag!

[cantsayidont]

Ancient Egyptians may have given cats the personality to conquer the world

Civilization of the pharaohs may have turbocharged domestication

19 JUN 2017

BY DAVID GRIMM

A cat in a domestic setting—eating under a dining table—sometime after 1500 B.C.E. ASHMOLEAN MUSEUM, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD/BRIDGEMAN IMAGES

In 2007, other researchers had analyzed the DNA of modern cats to show that all living domestic cats trace their ancestry to the Near Eastern wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica)—a small, sandy-colored feline that looks like a Mackerel tabby. This subspecies contains felines with five unique genetic signatures in their mitochondrial DNA. …

The world's first cats all appear to sport the same lybica subtype, mitochondrial type A. This genetic signature pops up at least 9000 years ago in what is now Turkey, the team reports today in Nature Ecology & Evolution. Archaeologists think that, perhaps about 10,000 years ago, wildcats in this region—with a southern coast just a few dozen kilometers from Cyprus—slunk into early farming villages to hunt rodents and eventually self-domesticated into modern cats. By 6500 years ago, these type A cats began appearing in southeastern Europe, the team found, possibly following migrating farmers. After that, cats infiltrated the rest of Europe, Africa, and Asia.

But that's only half the story. Most of the Egyptian cat mummies sport a different lybica subtype, type C, which first appears in the team's samples around 800 B.C.E. (It's possible that the type C cat could have been living in Egypt much earlier—the early graveyard study didn't yield any usable DNA.) Cats with this genetic signature appear to have been incredibly popular: By the fifth century C.E., they spread through Europe and the Mediterranean. And during the first millennium C.E., they came to outnumber type A cats two to one in places like western Turkey.

The ancient Egyptians may have been responsible for this popularity. "The Egyptians were the first people to have the resources to do everything bigger and better," says Carlos Driscoll, the World Wildlife Fund chair in conservation genetics at the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun, who led the 2007 study. That ability may have extended to breeding cats. As the Egyptians bred more and more felines, Driscoll speculates, they would have selected for the ones that were easiest to have around—more social and less territorial than their predecessors. "They turbocharged the tameness process."

Egypt's art reflects this dramatic transformation. The earliest representations of cats depict a working animal, like the rat hunter in the limestone tomb. But over the centuries the felines begin to appear in more domestic contexts, hunting birds with people, wearing collars, and—by 1500 B.C.E.—sitting under chairs at the dinner table. "They go from being a slaughterer of mice to a couch potato," says Eva Maria-Geigl, an evolutionary geneticist who oversaw the study with molecular biologist Thierry Grange, both at the Jacques Monod Institute in Paris.

[felinefractious]

I’m curious, how would you describe the phenotype of the Standard Issue Cat (SIC) ™? I’ve tried to look though your blog but I couldn’t figure it out. I’m guessing it’s pretty straightforward, but it’d be fun to have an official sounding phrase for this variety of cat.

Ah yes, the standard issue cat… the OG… the original flavor… the wild type coat… one day I will have a SIC™️ and he will be named Nintendo DS (DS being short for Default Settings).

The SIC™️ is a shorthair black mackerel (or spotted tabby), most often referred to colloquially as a “brown tabby” or a “tiger tabby” by the layperson.

[Image Source]

Here it is in the fluffy variety.

[Image Source]

And here is a variety influenced by the bengal modifier gene, altering the stripes into a pattern called braided or candleflame.

[Image Source]

And here is an African Wildcat (Felis lybica) tom, which is the species which our cats were domesticated from, sporting a remarkably similar coat.

[Image Source]

Another African Wildcat (F. lybica).

[Image Source]

Northern F. lybica Wildcat subspecies doing a zoom zoom.

[Image Source]

Asiatic F. lybica Wildcat subspecies with a worried expression.

[mockva]

Felis lybica

[roseate-felidae]

Scottish Wildcats from British wildlife centre

These are last years adolescents, hard to take good photos with the bars in the way. They came out for a feeding/talk. They were eating chicken chicks. There was four in one enclosure.

There were younger kittens in an adjacent enclosure. one kitten was brave enough to approach an adolescent close to the bars. The kittens came out after the feeding talk. the bars were at a bad angle and appear harsher in the photos.

Overall I was super happy to see living Scottish wildcats (I had seen many taxidermy specimens). it had been my dream for a long time. The photos aren't terrible and I saw kittens!!! I was interested to hear they can take down Muntjacs (one was recorded to take down a roe deer). These are not what Domestic cats are descended from (that is the African wildcat, Felis lybica). But they did remind me of little tabby cats and can hybridise. They used to native to all of the British isles. But now have small strongholds in Scotland. The kittens from here are released in programs when they are old enough. They are critically endangered. Threatened by hybridisation with free roaming domestics, habitat loss and were once prosecuted.

@mekanikaltrifle @robotslenderman @amber-tortoiseshell @lepurcinus @felinefractious finally got round to uploading my camera photos of the Scottish wildcats! not the best photos due to bars but I'm happy. also kittens!!!!

[inbarfink]

[antiqueanimals]

Felis lybica. Struik Pocket Guides for South Africa: Mammals. Written by John Skinner. Illustrated by Penny Meakin. 1988.

Internet Archive

[tigerleopardlion]

Southern African Wildcat | Ingmar Van der Brugge

[thatswhywelovegermany]

The European Wild Cat (Felis sylvestris sylvestris) is a small feline species currently re-populating vast areas of Germany. Its population is distributed over large areas of Southern and Central Europe from the far west to Ukraine and the Caucasus. It is absent in Northern Europe. After a dramatic drop of the population in the late 19th and early 20th century, which led to a complete disappearance in many regions and entire countries, the population and inhabited areas are constantly expanding again. Today's population is probably vastly underestimated due to the elusive lifestyle. New finds in an area are often made by chance on camera traps. The species has reappeared in Switzerland and Austria in the recent years and is reclaiming forests in Southern and Central Germany. The sharp decline in population was formerly attributed to intense hunting, but paleo-veterinarian investigations found evidence for an epidemic event as the likely cause.

In Germany, the cat prefers to live in large forests with little disturbances. This has led to the assessment that an undisturbed and unmanaged forest with the general absence of humans is required as a habitat for these cats. However, this assessment has come under debate as in Southern Europe, the European Wild Cat lives in more densely populated areas in close proximity to settlements. Camera traps in Germany have shown European Wild Cats living in relative proximity to human settlements. In addition, contrary to former belief, the existence of wide roads is not a major obstacle for the migration and the re-population of habitats. Nevertheless, Germany with its large forested areas provides ideal habitat for the European Wild Cat.

The European Wild Cat is similar in appearance to the common domestic cat, but its body is bigger, more massive, with taller legs and a head that accommodates a bigger brain. In contrast to the domestic cat, the European Wild Cat is regarded as being indomitable.

The status of The European Wild Cat and the domestic cat as two separate species (Felis silvestris and Felis catus, respectively – Felis catus originating fro Felis lybica, the African Wildcat) as defined by IUCN is debated among zoologists, as individuals of both taxonomical units can have viable and fertile offspring, which is usually results in assigning them as subspecies of the same species (Felis sylvestris sylvestris and Felis sylvestris lybica, respectively). Hybrids of Felis sylvestris and Felis catus also occur in nature, which leads among conservationists to the concern that pure-breed Felis sylvestris will die out in the future due to bastardization.

[mirtadraws]

Inktober day 17 - African wildcat, the ancestor of our domestic cat

This year I'm drawing wild cat species for Inktober. Which one would you like to see?

[amber-tortoiseshell]

Pylogenetic wild cat tournament

Domestic cat lineage

Genus: Felis

Depth: 12 (11 wins away from championship)

Honestly I tried to read about the relationship of the Felis species, but all the hybridization makes the situation very hard to understand.

[Felis catus:] Domesticated mostly from a lineage of Felis lybica lybica from Mesopotamia. (A revised taxonomy of Felidae' (2017))

The domestic cat is arbitrarily considered either as a subspecies of F. silvestris (Felis silvestris catus) or as a distinct species (Felis catus). (European wildcat and domestic cat: Do they really differ? (2017))

European wildcats, Felis silvestris, can hybridize with domestic cats, Felis catus, which was domesticated from the African wildcat, Felis lybica, to produce fertile offspring. [...] Indeed, domestic cats are genetically closer to Felis lybica, a species that has evolved in a different ecological and evolutionary context than Felis silvestris. (A common statement on anthropogenic hybridization of the European wildcat (Felis silvestris) (2023))

I kinda give it up. Have some pictures at least:

Chinese mountain cat

I love the blue eyes, it's a very interesting and unique trait of the species.

African wildcat

Elegant creature!

[thevoidlands]

So you see, Fennel.. [get ready to read this all creator😭😭]

All domestic cats belong to a single species – Felis catus. This is in spite of the great variety of modern cat breeds, from the sleek blue-eyed Siamese and beautifully-spotted Ocicat, to the snub-nosed Persian and the tiny Munchkin. They all belong to the Felidae branch of the animal family tree.

The Felidae is made up of two subfamilies – the Felinae, which includes domestic cats, all the smaller wild cats, and some medium sized beasts such as the Puma, Bobcat, Serval and Cheetah. The other branch of the family, the Pantherinae, contains the big scary ones. We’re talking about Lions, Tigers, Leopards, and Jaguars.

The domestic cat’s wild ancestor is the African Wild Cat, also known as the Near Eastern Cat, (Felis silvestris lybica) – not its very close relative the European Wild Cat (Felis silvestris silvestris). This isn’t just guesswork – the evidence is all there in the cat’s DNA (the genetic coding that makes each species, and each individual within a species, unique). Domestic cats split off from their ancestor around 10,000 years ago. That’s a long history for a family pet!

And in case you start thinking your pet puss is a million miles away from all those lions, tigers and leopards, you may be shocked to hear that kitty shares 95% of her DNA with an African Lion. Not quite as close as humans and Chimpanzees (98.8%), but still very close cousins.

And, when you think about it, cats are just a small pounce away from their wild state, no matter how much they cuddle up and purr in your lap. Hunting and self-sufficiency are second nature to them, as the millions of feral cats around the world show us. The most appealing theory of how and when cats came to be domesticated goes like this. At the dawn of history, African wildcats made a choice to move in with humans, enjoying the relative warmth and comfort. And all they had to do in return was the thing that comes most naturally to them – hunting down mice and rats.

But there are other theories too…

The general ballpark figure for the widespread domestication of cats is around 10,000 years ago. The rise in their fortunes coincides with the rise of agriculture. As soon as humans were storing grain, the rodents had a field day, and the cats had their work cut out. This theory would place domestication at about 12,000 years ago in the Middle East’s “Fertile Crescent” – the cradle of western agriculture, in a crescent-shaped area of fertile land around Egypt and Syria.

The earliest evidence we have of cats being kept as pets is a 9,500 year-old Neolithic grave in Cyprus containing a man and his feline friend. So, by the time of the cat’s most celebrated early heydays in Ancient Egypt (4,000 years or so ago), they were not exactly newcomers to the domestic hearth. But the Egyptians made a particular fuss of their pets, mummifying them, and worshipping the cat goddess Bastet amongst their vast reservoir of deities. Domestic cats – all descended from those African Wild Cat ancestors – arrived in Europe with Greek and Phoenician traders about 3,000 years ago. The Romans carried cats in their baggage wherever they marched. -🌑🐮

[lost-lycaon]

African wild cat - Felis lybica.

This is no housecat - the Wild Cat is a true wild animal, and is the ancestor from which domesticated cats descended. Nocturnal, hunting primarily by sound, preying on rodents, birds, and lizards. Highly adaptable, it is found thoughout Africa and the Middle East. It is in theory endangered, as it readily interbreeds with domesticated cats. It could therefore go extinct as its native DNA merges with Felis catus permanently.

[mammalidentifier]

hey mammal, do you happen to know if any other animals brux and boggle, or is that only a rodent behavior?

Boggling is something generally only seen in rats (and to a much lesser extent in mice) because of their anatomy, but other mammals do grind their teeth to communicate! Lagomorphs do it and it serves the same function as a rodent’s bruxing: they do it when they’re relaxed or as a self-soothing behavior when they’re stressed or anxious. Here’s a very relaxed domestic bunny “purring”:

Bats and certain monkeys (especially macaques) are known to chatter their teeth as well! It seems different species of monkeys do it for different reasons but in bats it’s generally understood as a display of curiosity.

Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) chattering (starts at 0:13).

Black crested macaque (Macaca nigra) chattering.

Large flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus) chattering (Sadly the only video I’ve been able to find was a Facebook video so you have to have an account to see it).

And, of course, cats do it! Most domestic cat owners have seen their cats chattering when they see birds or other prey animals but this behavior is seen in wild cats as well, such as the domestic cat’s direct ancestor, the African wildcat (Felis lybica):