Bauer 1

Daniel Bauer

Professor Allena Williams

ENG 1201

7 July 2020

Lions and Tigers and… Cats?

I was preparing for bed when I was asked by my mother if I’ve seen our cat Vinny

recently. I haven’t seen him since that morning when he jumped off the refrigerator. We

panicked. I took a flashlight and was looking outside while my mother was searching Lost &

Found Pets websites and Facebook pages. Just then, my mother heard Vinny’s high - pitched

meow. She looked under the broken part of our couch and found him lying under it. Turns out

he sprained his leg and was laying under there all day. This little event had me thinking, “Why

do cats do what they do?” Then that turned into, “What makes cats excellent hunters?” The

answer to this is not that simple. Many things give cats the ability to be successful hunters, both

physical and behavioral characteristics, such as bone and ear structure. These features give cats

certain abilities that enable them to hunt with ease. By studying such features, people may, in

the future, be able to take better care of cats or even create better biotechnology.

Cats kill many animals every year. They have even caused an entire species to go extinct.

As Taylor and Mills have stated in their article about cats in The Encyclopedia of Applied Animal

Behaviour and Welfare, due to the lighthouse keeper David Lyall bringing his cat with him to

Stephen’s Island, a previously undiscovered and rare species of bird called the Stephen’s Island

wren, or Lyall’s wren, was hunted to extinction. If a single cat can wipe out an entire population

of birds, then they are apex predators. Not just that, but ones that sleep in everyone’s beds.
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fig.1 Image of a feral cat (right), the cat that wiped out the
Stephen’s Island wren (left). Courtesy of John Keulemans
(wren) and Brocken Inaglory (cat).
What enables them to kill off so many animals? First of all, there are the physical

characteristics. The bone structure is, arguably, one of the most important physical

characteristics of cats. Cats have about 20 vertebrae in their tails. For this reason, cats can

balance with ease on precarious surfaces. In addition to having 20 vertebrae in their tails, cats

also have bones in their back legs that can be compared to the human hand and arm bones.

Plus, their angular gambrel is similar to the human ankles. These bone formations allow cats to

run faster, leap longer distances, react faster than humans, and better cushion the impact of

falling. Cats also have approximately three “floating bones,” or bones that are not connected to

the rest of the skeleton. These detached bones enable felines to increase and decrease their

body’s length and width. For example, Cats International stated in their article of cat facts, such

as their different abilities, that cats can stretch their bodies out approximately 11 percent when

jumping. They can do this because of their floating bones. However, there is much more than

just their bone structure.

Another major contributing factor to their success physically is their muscles. Cats have

over 500 muscles, giving them the ability to move their forefront and back bisections of their
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anatomy in opposing directions. 64 of them are located in the ears (32 in each) to allow cats to

swivel their ears up to 180 degrees, therefore increasing their ability to locate the source of

sounds (Cats International). Cats also have very loose joints, spines, tendons, ligaments, and

muscles. This increases their agility and allows them to leap far and twist in midair for better

attacking angles and landing positions (Bukowski and Aiello, Characteristics of Cats). This is

something every feline has in common, both domestic and wild. Due to the number and

arrangement of feline muscles, cats can move much faster and hunt their prey easily.

Next, there is the mouth. I remember waking up in the middle of the night to a strange

feeling on my face. I’d open my eyes, and one of my cats would be grooming me. It was rough,

and did not feel good. This is because cats’ tongues are covered with hooked scales for

grooming. Those scales are perfect for ridding their fur of dirt and fleas. However, they can

sometimes be too efficient. Cats can accidentally swallow fleas and flea eggs, getting

tapeworms in the process. Luckily, cats can’t really taste them. Cats only have 473 taste buds

compared to a human’s 9,000. Plus, all of their taste buds are at the point of their tongues.

However, tongue aside, their mouths are perfect for a predator. Their teeth are great at ripping

apart flesh, as well as holding prey. According to Bukowski and Aiello in “Characteristics of

Cats,” the front teeth consist of 16 teeth designed for holding on to and tearing flesh, while the

back teeth chew the food up so it slides down the throat more easily. The way feline teeth

seem to work together to help cats feed is perfect for predators. In addition to the perfect

predator teeth, cat saliva also helps with feeding. Their saliva makes the food slippery so it can

easily slide down the throat, and it commences the digestive process. However, the mouth is

only one of many characteristics of cats.

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The ears and nose of cats also contribute to their success. A cat’s sense of smell is about

40 times more sensitive than that of a human’s With this, cats are able to easily track their prey.

However, they don't use their noses the way cats do. In fact, cats will even try to cover up the

source of nasty odors, such as their feces. They also cover up their feces so predators such as

coyotes and wolves can’t track them. On the other hand, cats use their ears more. When it

comes to higher levels of sound, or higher pitches, cats can hear about 5 times more cycles per

second. This enables them to detect their prey while hunting. They can even hear better than

dogs. Dogs can only hear up to 40,000 cycles per second, while cats are able to hear at 100,000

cycles per second (Cats International). Cats are also able to detect the direction of the sources

of sounds much like a human can. Just like humans, cats will point their heads in the direction

that sounds come from so as to see what the source is. The reason cats can hear so much better

than people is because of the way the ears are shaped. Their ears are made up of three major

components: the outer, middle, and inner ears. The outer ear is made up of two parts: the

pinna (plural pinnae) and the ear canal. The pinnae are the outside parts of the ear that are

visible. They are designed to capture sound and transport them into the ear. The pinnae can

move independently. The ear canal is the inside of the pinnae. They are longer and more

narrow in the end than the ear canals of humans, magnifying the sound. Next is the middle ear.

The middle ear contains the eardrum, two muscles, and a miniscule air - filled chamber with

three infinitesimal bones for transmitting sound waves (Bukowski and Aiello, “Ear Structure in

Cats”). The eardrum magnifies the sound so it can reach all the way through the ear, and the

bones do the same. The two muscles are called the oval window and the eustachian tube. The

oval window allows sound to reach the inner ear. The eustachian tube is a tube connected to
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the nose to allow air to reach the middle ear. Finally, there is the inner ear. The inner ear is

made up of two organs: the cochlea and the vestibular system. The cochlea translates the

sound waves into electrical impulses and sends them to the brain. The vestibular system is a

miniscule chamber filled with a liquid to increase agility and maintain balance.

Feline legs and paws are just as important as their ears. Cats not only use them for

transportation, but also for fighting, hunting, holding things, and more. Usually, cats have five

toes on their front paws and four on their back. However, polydactyl
Diagram catsImage
of a cat’s ear. are known
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Bukowski
Aiello from Merck Veterinary Manual in their article, “Ear
with extra toes. These extra toes enable them to run Structure
and climb andmuch
Function in Cats.”
faster than normal cats.

Plus, cat bones comparable to certain human bones are in the perfect places for them. For

example, as mentioned earlier, cat bones close to the human arm and hand bones are located

in their lower legs, and their angular gambrel is relatable to the human ankles. Since cats have

these bone formations, they are able to jump far and run fast. In addition to the legs, cats also

have excellent paws. Their paws have thick, tough pads on the bottoms. These enable them to

run across ragged surfaces without hurting themselves. Plus, their claws are sharper and more

curved than those of canines. That allows them to hold onto things. Cats can also retract their

claws to prevent noise or the slowing of progress. However, their back claws only retract about

halfway. This is so that they can release them quicker when they need to grasp the ground

rapidly. Every once in a while, cats need to claw objects to sharpen their claws and shed old

layers. In brief, legs and paws are also important aspects of the cat.

Hair and skin is more important than many people may think. There are four different

types of cat hairs, each with their own purposes. These four types of hairs are whiskers, awn

hairs, dawn hairs, and guard hairs. The dawn hairs are the soft hairs closer to their skin on their
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back, and they protect cats from the cold. On top of the dawn hairs are the guard hairs. Just as

their name implies, they protect the dawn hair and the skin from minor scratches. The awn hair

is the thick belly hair. These hairs act as both the dawn hairs and the guard hairs. Finally, there

are the whiskers. Whiskers are the longest hairs, and are the most deeply rooted of all the

hairs. They are rooted deep enough to touch the nervous system. Whiskers are also the most

sensitive hairs. They are able to detect movement, incoming storms, and the size of entrance

holes to burrows. Whiskers are the only hairs that do not shed. Cats shed their fur according to

hormones and weather. If it is a hot summer, they will shed to keep themselves from

overheating. However, in cold weather, instead of shedding, they have hair follicles that will

stiffen and straighten out to trap in heat. Since cat fur behaves the way it does, cats are able to

withstand temperatures up to 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit. However, if it weren’t for the skin, the

fur wouldn’t be of any use. The epidermis and the dermis are the two major layers of the skin.

The epidermis is the outside layer of skin that not only protects the dermis, but is also

constantly shedding to keep the “protection” in its prime. The dermis is the innermost layer of

skin. This layer of skin contains “nerves, blood vessels, oil glands, and hair follicles” (Bukowski

and Aiello, Characteristics of Cats). Sebum, a type of oil, is produced by the oil glands to coat

the fur and make the fur waterproof when grooming. This makes the coat glossy in the process.

Due to the skin and the fur, cats are able to withstand many things.

The eyes are also a major part of the success of cats. It’s common knowledge that cats

can see with much less light than people. But most people don't know why cats are able to. It’s

all due to the way the feline eyes are made up. There are two major layers of the eyes that

enable vision in lower light levels. These layers are the tapetum lucidum and the choroid. When
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light first enters the eye, it is reflected off the tapetum lucidum and then off the inside of the

choroid, finally reaching the retina. This process of reflection magnifies light, but also distorts

the image. The distortion of the image prevents cats from seeing clearly from more than 20

feet, although it does make cats’ night vision six times stronger than that of humans. It also

fig.2 Diagram
causes of the
their eyes tofeline
gloweye. Courtesy
in the darkofand
BowinWow
photographs. Other than special layers, the eyes
Meow Pet Insurance.

also have special cells in their eyes. There are two of these cells: rods and cones. Rods magnify

the light intake, while the cones improve their eyesight and allow cats to judge speed and

distance well. However, cats cannot see slow motion, which is why they will often creep up

slowly on each other. Another part of their eyes that is useful is a “third eyelid,” or nictitating

membrane, that protects the eyes from scratches and inflammation. Both cats and dogs have

this. One last advantage of their eyes is their peripheral vision. Cats can see approximately 200

degrees around, whereas humans can only see approximately 180 degrees around. These

abilities allow cats to hunt with ease.

The feline metabolism, temperature regulation, and sense of touch are also important.

Cats have the most sensitive sense of touch out of all the animal kingdom thanks to their

whiskers. Their whiskers are able to detect storms and the sizes of holes. They also reach

forward during hunting to receive information about their prey. Without their sense of touch,

they would not succeed anywhere near as much as they do. Cats also are able to regulate their

body temperature. One of the ways they do so is through shedding some of their fur. This

allows them to trap in less heat during the summer months. They also cool themselves down

through grooming. Their saliva helps to cool them down much like swimming cools humans

down. They will pant to release heat, too. However, panting isn’t as effective in cats as it is in
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dogs. Another factor is their metabolism. When they are still kittens, their metabolisms are

high. Then, once they reach the age of one year, their metabolism slows down. Their

metabolism rises rapidly again once they reach the age of 11 years old. In addition, when

people have their cats spayed/neutered, their metabolic rate decreases by approximately 30

percent. This means that they require less calories, therefore not needing as much food. While

it may not seem that these little things are insignificant in the success of cats, they are actually

rather helpful. Good temperature control can prevent cats from overheating or freezing to

death. Lower metabolisms can allow cats to require less food. Their sensitive sense of touch can

allow them to detect much more things than other organisms. That is why each of these things

are significant.

Finally, the way cat’s can move is another major factor in their success. For example,

cats are able to leap up to five times their own length. According to Cats International, if

humans were able to do so, then they would be able to jump approximately the width of a

swimming pool. Healthy cats are also able to obtain a speed of no more than 31 miles per hour,

but since they have small bodies, they are only able to maintain that speed for about a minute.

Since they have such a unique sense of balance and agility, cats have the ability to quickly

maneuver themselves into a righted position in which they can land on their feet. Because of

the shape of the bones in their legs, cats distribute the shock from impact evenly throughout

their bones, preventing them from twisting and shattering. There are records of cats surviving

incredible falls with relatively little damage. According to Daniel Nasaw from BBC News, there

was a cat that fell 32 stories onto concrete, only suffering from a damaged tooth and a

collapsed lung, and was released from the vet two days later. The study shows the abilities of
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cats to survive great falls, allowing them to stalk their prey from high places safely. The incident

is just one of many showing the amazing abilities of cats.

The many physical attributes of cats may seem to be enough to make them apex

predators, but without the proper behavior, the physical attributes would be useless. For one,

they constantly are resting. This may seem to make them lazy, but they aren’t. They constantly

rest so they are well rested for hunting. They are most active at dawn and twilight since those

are the best hunting times. All the rest of the time, adult cats spend on resting. However, all

that sleeping does not impair their attentiveness at the time of waking. In fact, cats attain full

attention after waking quicker than any other living being. Plus, they are conserving energy,

making it even easier to catch their prey with extra energy. According to Cats International,

“Cats conserve energy by sleeping for an average of 13 to14 hours a day.” This shows that cats

are actually being smart when they rest so much, not lazy.

Cats also have several hunting - related behaviors. Many of these behaviors may seem

to be strange or funny to people. But to cats, they are a means of survival. For example, after a

successful hunt, cats will oftentimes do a ‘victory dance’ to build up their confidence. Plus,

when they are hunting, cats will walk on their toes with their claws retracted, and will place

their back paws in the same exact places they placed their front paws. By doing so, they limit

the tracks they make, and they increase their stealth, agility, and speed. In fact, cats are born

with the hunting instincts buried deep inside of them. Kittens will even sniff food to make sure

it’s safe before they actually touch it. They will also start practice - fighting with each other the

second they can move around on their own. These are just some of many of the different

hunting - related behaviors of cats.

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There are also several protection - related behaviors of cats. One of which is the burial

of their feces. Cats cover up their feces to prevent predators such as coyotes and wolves from

tracking them through their scent. Mother cats will also groom themselves and their kittens

after feeding to wash off the scent so they cannot be found by canines and other predators that

use their sense of smell to track prey. Another reason why cats groom themselves is to clean

wounds to prevent infection. They will also cool themselves down on hot days and rid their fur

of dirt and fleas. For the cleaning, it really helps that their tongues are covered with barbed

scales. They can easily comb through the cat’s fur. Another reason they groom themselves is to

relieve stress. It feels good to the cats when they groom themselves. Therefore, when living in

stressful situations, cats will groom themselves to make themselves feel better. They will also

groom other cats and humans to try to spread the feeling. Excessive grooming because of stress

is bad, however. It can result in hair loss, which, as discussed earlier, is important for cats. In

brief, there are also several feline behaviors related to protection.

Feral cats also have several marking behaviors. Tom cats, or male feral cats, will often

make their daily rounds around their territory to make sure there are no intruders and that

their territory is well scented. When marking territory, cats use urine due to its longer lasting

scent. In addition, cats have scent glands on their heads. Scent glands located on their

foreheads are used to mark humans and other cats. Scent glands on their chin and around their

mouth are used to mark non - living objects. It is still unknown as to why specific scent glands

are designated for marking specific things. One possible theory is the ease of access. Whatever

the reasons are, it is still a behavior related to marking.

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Finally, cats also have certain communication behaviors. For example, adult cats do not

meow at other cats unless they need their help. Instead, they reserve the meow for humans to

communicate their wants. However, kittens will still meow at their mothers to let them know

that they are hungry. Surprisingly, cats are able to communicate with approximately 100

different vocal sounds. Studies have shown the meanings of approximately 27 different vocal

sounds, but the rest are still unknown. According to Chloe Tavernier and her partners, who

wrote an article about cat vocal sounds for PubMed Central, there is very little commonly

known about feline communication among people. This is an example to show how largely

unknown feline communication is. However, people can still understand their cats. For

instance, every morning, if one of my cats, Holly, wants food and I’m not up yet, she will lay

directly on my chest. This is her way of saying, “Get up and feed me.” On the larger scale,

however, it is impossible to tell whether or not people will finally be able to understand

everything cats have to say.

Some people might say that cats can’t possibly be apex predators with nearsightedness.

However, this is simply not true. The introduction of a single cat to an island caused the

extinction of an entire species native to the said island. If a single cat can do something like

that, then cats are positively apex predators.

In summary, both physical and behavioral attributes enable cats to be apex predators.

These attributes include: bone and muscle structure, eyes, nose, ears, fur, skin, etc.

Furthermore, these predators also have hunting and protection related behaviors, as well as

communication attributes. Yet even with all of these aspects, there is still more. It is important
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to understand everything about cats so that possible future biotechnology and the way cats are

treated can be improved.

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Works Cited

Bukowski, John A., and Susan Aiello. “Description and Physical Characteristics of Cats.”

Merck Veterinary Manual, 2011, https://www.merckvetmanual.com/cat-

owners/description-and-physical-characteristics-of-cats/description-and-physical-

characteristics-of-cats. Accessed 29 June 2020.

---. “Ear Structure and Function in Cats.” Merck Veterinary Manual, August 2018,

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/cat-owners/ear-disorders-of-cats/ear-structure-

and-function-in-cats. Accessed 8 July 2020.

Cats International. “Amazing Cat Facts.” Cats International, 2020,

https://catsinternational.org/amazing-cat-facts/. Accessed 6 July 2020.

Nasaw, Daniel. “Who, What, Why: How do cats survive falls from great heights?” BBC

News, 25 March 2012, https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-17492802. Accessed 30

June 2020.

PAWS Chicago. “Cat Senses.” PAWS Chicago, 2020, www.pawschicago.org/news-

resources/all-about-cats/kitty-basics/cat-senses/. Accessed 8 July 2020.

Shojai, Amy. “Why Cats Groom Themselves So Often.” The Spruce Pets, 16 June 2018,

https://www.thesprucepets.com/why-cats-groom-themselves-so-often-

4126526#:~:text=To%20Groom%20and%20Lubricate%20the,and%20parasites%20such

%20as%20fleas. Accessed 6 July 2020.

Tamura, T., et al. "Light adaptation in cat retinal rods." Science, vol. 245, no. 4919, 1989,

p. 755+. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, EBSCOhost, https://link-gale-

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com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/A7996105/OVIC?

u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=e98dfc90. Accessed 6 July 2020.

Tavernier, Chloé, et al. “Feline vocal communication.” PubMed Central, 31 December

2019, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7000907/. Accessed 29 June

2020

Taylor, and Mills. "Cat." The Encyclopedia of Applied Animal Behaviour & Welfare,

edited by D. S. Mills, CABI, 1st edition, 2010. Credo Reference,

http://sinclair.ohionet.org/login?

url=https://search.credoreference.com/content/entry/cabiaabw/cat/0?

institutionId=6043. Accessed 01 July 2020.

The target audience will be cat behavioralists, veterinarians, cat lovers, and

biotechnology engineers.