Hairs of wild Felis silvestris silvestris and domestic Felis catus – are they distinctive after all? (Carnivora: Felidae) [Srst kočky divoké (Felis silvestris silvestris) a kočky domácí (Felis catus) – jsou přítomny rozdíly či nikoli? (Carnivora: Felidae)]

Lisa Lehmann, Clara Stefen

Pages	65-79
DOI	10.37520/lynx.2020.006
Keywords	Felis silvestris, Felis catus, primary hair, colour banding pattern, hair length, hair width, cuticle structure, cuticle parameters
Type of Article	Peer-reviewed
Citation	LEHMANN, Lisa a STEFEN, Clara. Hairs of wild Felis silvestris silvestris and domestic Felis catus – are they distinctive after all? (Carnivora: Felidae) [Srst kočky divoké (Felis silvestris silvestris) a kočky domácí (Felis catus) – jsou přítomny rozdíly či nikoli? (Carnivora: Felidae)]. Lynx, new series. Prague: National Museum, 2020, 51(1), 65-79. DOI: https://doi.org/10.37520/lynx.2020.006. ISSN 0024-7774 (print), 1804-6460 (online). Also available from: https://www.nm.cz/en/periodicals/lns/51-1/hairs-of-wild-felis-silvestris-silvestris-and-domestic-felis-catus-are-they-distinctive-after-all-carnivora-felidae-srst-kocky-divoke-felis-silvestris-silvestris-a-kocky-domaci-felis-catus-jsou-pritomny-rozdily-ci-nikoli-carnivora-felidae

Lynx, new series | 2020/51/1

This study addressed the question whether it is possible to clearly differentiate between wild and tabby domestic cats on the basis of hairs (guard hairs in particular). The colour banding pattern of individual hairs is studied in this context for the first time. Also, hair length and width, as well as parameters of the hair cuticle were checked for differences, as it is well known that wild cats have long hairs and a fine, silky fur. Several banding patterns were observed, some shared between both cat forms, but with different frequencies. But this is not enough for species differentiation and more specimens need to be studied to get a better idea of the variation in this trait. The cuticle pattern even in the same region of the hairs (medium and shield-free part of the hair shaft) varies considerably and statistically significant differences were found only for few measured parameters: hair length, hair width and scale perimeter. Nevertheless, even most of them are not sufficient to determine wild or domestic cats. However, as expected, the hairs of wild cats are statistically significantly longer than those of tabby domestic cats, and hairs longer than 50 mm can be clearly attributed to wild cats.

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