Visual and tactile communication in the Domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) and undomesticated small felids

Abstract

The domestication of the cat is thought to have resulted in two important changes to its behaviour; firstly the presence of a high density of food around human settlements caused an increased in its intraspecific sociality, and secondly, the cat developed an increasing tolerance for humans. In this thesis the effects of domestication on the signalling methods of the domestic cat are investigated and compared with those of undomesticated species from the family Felidae.

Captive groups of undomesticated felids were selected for observation with the intention that different degrees of relatedness to the domestic cat were represented in the sample. These were Felis silvestris ornata (Indian desert cat: domestic cat lineage), Felis chaus (jungle cat: domestic cat lineage), Caracal caracal (caracal: pantherine lineage) and Oncifelis geoffroyi (Geoffroy's cat: ocelot lineage). All were found to exhibit the majority of social behaviours and signals that are known to be part of the domestic cat ethogram, with the exception of the Tail Up signal, which was not performed in the affiliative context in which it is used in domestic cat colonies. It was therefore concluded that Tail Up evolved to function as a signal in the domestic cat, possibly during domestication. All four species were found to have adapted well to an enforced social life in captivity, and to show much social behaviour, despite being solitary in the wild. This suggests that social plasticity, a trait which may have been the basis of domestication, is widespread among the fields.

The Tail Up signal in the domestic cat was subsequently investigated in more detail, by analysis of field observations of interactions in which it occurred, and via a manipulation experiment (using cat silhouettes as stimuli). Tail Up was found to occur in affiliative situations, and to be particularly temporally connected with social rubbing.

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