The Cat Family

All about the Family of Cats.

1. The Roots of the Cat Family

2. Felidae  is the biological family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. The most familiar felid is the domestic cat, which first became associated with humans about 10,000 years ago; but the family includes all other wild cats, including the big cats. There are 41 known species of felids in the world today, all of which are descended from the same ancestor.

3. General Classification Genetic research has provided a basis for a more concise classification for the living members of the cat family based on genotypical groupings. Specifically, eight genetic lineages have been identified: Lineage 1: Pantherinae  :  Panthera ,  Uncia ,  Neofelis Lineage 2:   Pardofelis ,  Catopuma Lineage 3:   Leptailurus , Caracal,  Profelis Lineage 4:   Leopardus Lineage 5:  Lynx Lineage 6:  Puma,  Acinonyx Lineage 7:   Prionailurus ,  Otocolobus Lineage 8:   Felis The last four lineages are more related to each other than to any of the first four, and so form a clade within the Felinae subfamily of family Felidae .

4. Lineage 1 Lineage 5 Lineage 2 Lineage 6 Lineage 3 Lineage 7 Lineage 4 Lineage 8 Lineage of the Cat Family

5. Panthera  is a genus within the  Felidae  family that was named and first described by the German naturalist  Oken  in 1816. Lineage 1 Different types of Cats in the Panthera

6. Jaguar Jaguars live in the dense forests of Central America. So do pumas, monkeys, parrots, and many other animals.

7. Leopard The leopard is a large, spotted cat of Africa and Asia. It hunts alone and at night and often stores its food in trees, away from other hungry animals.

8. Tiger They can move silently through the forest. They can kill a huge wild boar with a single bite. Their roar sends shivers down your spine. They are perhaps the perfect killing machines. They are tigers. Next Classification of Lineage 1

9. Uncia The  snow leopard ( Panthera   uncia  or  Uncia uncia ) is a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia. A Snow leopard does not roar. Different Classification of lineage 1

10. Neofelis Neofelis  is a genus comprising two extant felid species from Southeast Asia: the clouded leopard ( Neofelis nebulosa ) of mainland Asia, and the  Sunda clouded leopard ( Neofelis diardi ) of Sumatra and Borneo. Cheetah Clouded Leopard Sunda Clouded Leopard Next Classification of Lineage 1

11. Cheetah The  cheetah  ( Acinonyx jubatus ) is a large feline (family  Felidae , subfamily  Felinae ) inhabiting most of Africa and parts of the Middle East. It is the only extant member of the genus  Acinonyx . The cheetah can run faster than any other land animal— as fast as 112 to 120 km/h (70 to 75 mph) [  in short bursts covering distances up to 500 m (1,600  ft ), and has the ability to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in three seconds. This cat is also notable for modifications in the species' paws. It is one of the few felids with semi-retractable claws. Neofelis

12. Clouded Leopard - medium-sized member of the cat family, native to the dense forests of southeast Asia. Despite its name, the clouded leopard is not a close relative of the true leopard. Neofelis

13. Sunda Clouded Leopard - Clouded leopards have proportionately the largest canine teeth of any type of living cat.

14. Pardofelis Pardofelis  is a genus within the family of cats. At present, this genus is defined as including three species native to Southeast Asia: the marbled cat, the bay cat and the Asian golden cat. Marbled Cat Catolynx Marmoratus Back to Lineages

15. Marbled Cat Pardofelis

16. Catolynx Marmoratus Pardofelis

17. Catopuma Catopuma  is a genus containing two small Asian felines, the Bay Cat ( C. badia ) and the Asian Golden Cat ( C. temminckii ). Bay Cat

18. Bay Cat

19. Serval The  serval ( Leptailurus serval ) is a medium-sized African wild cat. DNA studies have shown that the serval is closely related to the African golden cat and the caracal. African Golden Cat Caracal Lineage 3

20. African Golden Cat Back

21. Caracal The caracal (Caracal caracal), also known as the desert lynx, is a wild cat that is widely distributed across Africa, central Asia and southwest Asia into India. In 2002 the listed the caracal as Least Concern as it is widespread and relatively common. The felid is considered threatened in north Africa, and rare in the central Asian republics and India. Types of Caracal Lineages

22. Caracal Desert Lynx

23. Leopardus (Lineage 4) Leopardus  is a genus consisting of small spotted cats mostly native to  Middle and  South America. Very few range into the southern United States. The genus is considered the oldest branch of the part of the cat family to cross into the Americas, followed by the genera  Lynx and   Puma . Andean Mountain Cat Margay Colocolo Ocelot Geoffroy’s Cat Oncilla Kodkod Pampas Cat Lineages

24. Andean Mountain Cat Back

25. Colocolo Back

26. Geoffroy’s Cat Back

27. Kodkod – The world’s smallest cat Back

28. Margay Back

29. Ocelot Back

30. Oncilla Back

31. Pampas Cat Back