Felis catus, cat taxonomy

Taxonomic lineage of domestic cat Felis catus

cellular organisms - Eukaryota - Fungi/Metazoa group - Metazoa - Eumetazoa - Bilateria - Coelomata - Deuterostomia - Chordata - Craniata - Vertebrata - Gnathostomata - Teleostomi - Euteleostomi - Sarcopterygii - Tetrapoda - Amniota - Mammalia - Theria - Eutheria - Laurasiatheria - Carnivora - Feliformia - Felidae - Felinae - Felis - Felis catus

Felidae (cat family)

Cat family (Felidae) belongs to order Carnivora.

The Felidae is made up of two distinct evolutionaty lineages, the modern cats, often referred as the true cats, and the extinct sabertoothed cats in the subfamily Machairodontinae. Both lineages are highly adapted to predation, but the great anatomical divergence within the group indicates that evolutionary selection has been very different. The American sabercat Smilodon fatalis (Pleistocene, 1.8 mya—10,000 years ago) is among the most charismatic of fossil carnivores. Its hunting techniques are still debated. Extreme specialisations of its features indicate predation on a large prey exclusively. The sabercats is a prime example of strong selective forces for an unusual feeding ecology, resulting in highly derived species that eventually proved to be not viable when climate, prey availability and overall ecological conditions changed.

Extant representative of Felidae family are divided into three subfamilies, each of which contains one or more genera.

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Subfamily Acinonychinae (cheetah)

• Acinonychinae
  • Acinonyx
    • Acinonyx jubatus Cheetah
      
      Cheetah lounging around in its enclosure in Maryland zoo.

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Subfamily Felinae ("little" cats)

• Felinae
  • Caracal
    • Caracal caracal Caracal
  • Catopuma
    • Catopuma badia Bay cat
    • Catopuma temminckii Asiatic golden cat
  • Felis
    • Felis catus Domestic cat
      
      
    • Felis chaus Jungle cat
    • Felis margarita Sand cat
    • Felis nigripes Black-footed cat
    • Felis silvestris Wild cat - considered a progenitor of the domestic cat.
      • Felis silvestris
        bieti Chinese desert cat
      • Felis silvestris
        cafra Southern African wildcat
      • Felis silvestris
        libyca Near Eastern wildcat
      • Felis silvestris
        ornata Central Asian wildcat
      • Felis silvestris
        silvestris European wildcat
  • Herpailurus
    • Herpailurus
      yaguarondi Jaguarundi
  • Leopardus Small spotted cats mostly native to Central and South America.
    • Leopardus colocolo Colocolo
    • Leopardus geoffroyi Geoffroy's cat
    • Leopardus guigna Kodkod
    • Leopardus pardalis Ocelot
    • Leopardus tigrinus Little spotted cat
    • Leopardus wiedii Margay
  • Leptailurus
    • Leptailurus serval Serval
  • Lynx
    • Lynx canadensis Canada lynx
    • Lynx lynx Eurasian lynx
    • Lynx pardinus Spanish lynx
      
      The endangered Iberian lynx feeds almost exclusively upon European rabbits, and rabbit scarcity has been identified as a major factor of lynx decline. López-Bao JV et al. PLoS One. 2009; 4(10): e7610.
    • Lynx rufus Bobcat
      
      A bobcat drawn to a scent lure placed near an infrared-triggered camera. Dobson A et al. PLoS Med. 2006 Jun;3(6):e231.
  • Oreailurus
    • Oreailurus
  • Otocolobus
    • Otocolobus manul Pallas's cat, manul
  • Prionailurus
    • Prionailurus
      bengalensis Leopard cat
    • Prionailurus
      iriomotensis Iriomote cat
    • Prionailurus
      planiceps Flat-headed cat
      
      Photo of a flat-headed cat, camera-trapped in Tangkulap Forest Reserve, Sabah, Malaysia in March 2009. Wilting A et al. PLoS One. 2010 Mar 17;5(3):e9612.
      This diminutive cat, with adults weighing as little as 1.59 kg, occurs in southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo. Most information on the distribution and natural history of the flat-headed cat comes from opportunistic incidental sightings, specimen collectors, and a few animals kept in captivity.
    • Prionailurus
      rubiginosa Rusty-spotted cat
    • Prionailurus
      viverrinus Fishing cat
      
      Early morning in National Zoo (Washington, DC)
  • Profelis
    • Profelis aurata African golden cat
  • Puma
    • Puma concolor Puma, cougar
      
      Photo credit: Liza Gross. PLoS Biol. 2008 February; 6(2)
      The cougar once the most widely distributed carnivore in the United States, was extirpated east of the Mississippi River by the early 1900s, save for a remnant population in Florida, which now struggles to survive with fewer than 90 individuals.

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Subfamily Pantherinae (panthers, big cats)

• Pantherinae
  • Neofelis
    • Neofelis diardi Bornean clouded leopard
    • Neofelis nebulosa Clouded leopard
  • Panthera
    • Panthera leo Lion
      
      Male lion in San Diego zoo.
    • Panthera onca Jaguar
    • Panthera pardus Leopard
    • Panthera tigris Tiger
      
      Sumatran Tiger cub (San Diego Zoo). Ryder OA. PLoS Genet. 2009 Aug;5(8):e1000603.
  • Pardofelis
    • Pardofelis
      marmorata Marbled cat
  • Uncia
    • Uncia uncia Snow leopard

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More about cats at GeoChemBio

• Cat main page (facts, domestication, nutrition, model organism)
• Cat reproductive cycle (mating, estrous cycle)
• Cat development (from fertilization to adult)
• Cat behavior (illustrated)
• Feline diabetes (all you need to know, Pushkin's lab, etc.)

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References

• Christiansen P. Evolution of skull and mandible shape in cats (Carnivora: Felidae). PLoS One. 2008 Jul 30;3(7):e2807.
• McHenry CR, Wroe S, Clausen PD, Moreno K, Cunningham E. Supermodeled sabercat, predatory behavior in Smilodon fatalis revealed by high-resolution 3D computer simulation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Oct 9;104(41):16010-5.

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