How Can We Help?
You are here:
< Back

The Cats Portal

Felidae (/ˈfɛlɪd/) is the family of mammals in the order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats. A member of this family is also called a felid (/ˈflɪd/). The term "cat" refers both to felids in general and specifically to the domestic cat (Felis catus).

The 41 extant Felidae species exhibit the greatest diversity in fur patterns of all terrestrial carnivores. Cats have retractile claws, slender muscular bodies and strong flexible forelimbs. Their teeth and facial muscles allow for a powerful bite. They are all obligate carnivores, and most are solitary predators ambushing or stalking their prey. Wild cats occur in Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas. Some wild cat species are adapted to forest and savanna habitats, some to arid environments, and a few also to wetlands and mountainous terrain. Their activity patterns range from nocturnal and crepuscular to diurnal, depending on their preferred prey species. (Full article...)

Selected species - show another

Indian leopard cat (P. b. bengalensis)

The leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) is a small wild cat native to continental South, Southeast, and East Asia. Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List as it is widely distributed although threatened by habitat loss and hunting in parts of its range.

Historically, the leopard cat of continental Asia was considered the same species as the Sunda leopard cat. As of 2017, the latter is recognised as a distinct species, with the taxonomic name Prionailurus javanensis. (Full article...)

List articles

WikiProjects

Selected breed - show another

Black silver spotted tabby Egyptian Mau

The Egyptian Mau is a small to medium-sized short-haired cat breed. They are one of the few naturally spotted breeds of domesticated cat. The spots of the Mau occur on only the tips of the hairs of its coat. It is considered a rare breed. (Full article...)

Did you know... - show different entries

European wildcat

Topics

Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

  • Commons
    Free media repository
  • Wikibooks
    Free textbooks and manuals
  • Wikidata
    Free knowledge base
  • Wikinews
    Free-content news
  • Wikiquote
    Collection of quotations
  • Wikisource
    Free-content library
  • Wikiversity
    Free learning tools
  • Wiktionary
    Dictionary and thesaurus
Discover Wikipedia using portals
Categories
Table of Contents