Showing posts with label tree-dwelling cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tree-dwelling cats. Show all posts

Friday, 22 April 2022

Why does a cat wag its tail? Indecision.

Note that I am referring to a specific tail movement, that of wagging, which is back-and-forth on the same plane. Cats will move their tail for other reasons and in other ways but the movement is not true "wagging" 😎. Often, you will read articles on the Internet which state that a cat wags their tail because they are angry. This is only partially true. It's more about indecision perhaps leading to frustration.

Cat stalking and tail wagging. The open ground does not provide cover for the cat which leads to indecision as to whether they should advance or not. This can result in tail wagging.  Photo: in public domain with arrows added.
Cat stalking and tail wagging. The open ground does not provide cover for the cat which leads to indecision as to whether they should advance or not. This can result in tail wagging.  Photo: in public domain with arrows added.

A domestic cat may be more irritated than angry when they are wagging their tail because they are in a state of mental conflict. The cat wants to do two things at the same time and is unsure which is the best choice. 


I remember seeing my late, now deceased, female cat sitting on a lawn where there was no cover for her to hide while she had a mind to stalk a bird. She wanted to chase the bird but did not have the cover to do it successfully and was in two minds whether to go or stay, and so she wagged her tail.

In another example, your domestic cat might like to go outside. You open the door and your cat encounters pouring rain and thinks twice about whether to go outside or not. Their mind is in conflict and this mental state is made visible in a wagging tail.

The interesting thing about a cat wagging her tail is how it originated. Desmond Morris, the well-known animal behaviourist and biologist, says that it originated from the fact that the cat's tail is a means of balance; the tail helps the domestic cat to balance.

You will notice that the tree dwelling wild cats have thick and long tails. The most noticeable tail on a wild cat is the rope-like tail of the snow leopard. The snow leopard has to negotiate very steep rocky slopes when hunting. You will notice that the snow leopard's tail moves from left to right all the time to help the cat to keep balance.

The argument is that the physical action of keeping balance through a swishing tale has evolved into an expression of the state of the mind of the cat when the cat's thought processes are in balance because he or she is uncertain about what to do next. Of course, not all cats all the time will be in this state of emotional indecision when stalking prey. It depends on the cat and the circumstances.

You can recognise the nice symmetry in the argument. Both physical and mental balancing is expressed in a wagging tail movement. It is really neat.

Monday, 18 April 2022

Cats That Live in Trees

This is a list of cats that live in trees. I am referring to a group of wild cat species, of course. The first sentence should be qualified by saying that no cat species lives in trees all the time. There are wild cats that live in forests and spend time in trees and hunt in trees. These cats also live on the ground (terrestrial cats). All cats are good climbers. Some are better than others. Tree dwelling cats are the best climbers for obvious reasons. They are usually slender and have long tails for balance. The picture of the margay below illustrates this admirably.

These two wild cat species are the best climbers and most associated with tree dwelling:
  1. Margay
  2. Clouded leopard
Margay resting in a tree, typical behavior - Photo copyright Adriane Taylor
See more of Adriane's work

Other wild cat species that spend time in trees are:
  • Ocelet - hunt on the ground, rest in trees and escape to trees
  • Leopard cat - likes forest cover and can be "quite arboreal in their habits"¹
  • African golden cat  - thought to be arboreal but short tail and stocky body indicates otherwise. More needs to be known about this cat.
  • Marbled cat - more arboreal than the average wild cat species.
  • Leopard - we have all seen leopards taking prey into trees and resting in trees.
All but one lives in Asia, where logging is destroying their habitat. See cats that like water.

Note: "Arboreal" means: living in trees. (1) Wild Cats of the World.

Margay

This is probably the best feline tree dweller. They tend to prey on other animals living in trees and terrestrial animals. They often feed on birds, rodents, insects and fruit. Yes, fruit. Most of the prey of the margay are nocturnal and arboreal. However, they also hunt on the ground feeding on mice, rabbits and young pacas and agoutis for example.

Sunday, 24 July 2016

How do margays get their food?

The question in the title asks how do margays hunt prey and then catch prey. This is my interpretation of the question in the title. It needs to be said right away that the margay is an incredibly agile small wild cat species which has physical adaptations allowing the cat to climb trees with great agility. You can read more about that on this page.


There's not been much research and very few observations of the hunting behaviour of wild margays. The limited research and information indicates that this cat species does much of its hunting above the ground.

In Guyana it was reported that the margay feeds on large arboreal mammals such as porcupines and capuchin monkeys. Although this report is unreliable. Recent analysis of the stomach contents and faeces of the margay indicates that they feed mainly on small rodents, insects, fruit and birds.

Most of the margay's prey are arboreal (living in trees) and nocturnal (active by night). However, this cat species also hunts on the ground.

One scientist radio collared a margay travelling from one hunting area to another on the ground. They probably kill whatever suitable terrestrial prey they encounter while moving between hunting areas.

In Brazil another scientists watched the margay spent 20 minutes trying to catch a bird. The bird was 6 meters up in a bamboo club. The cat was in the bamboo clump himself and when the bird flew off the cat came to the ground. The same scientists recorded a margay eating an amphibian beneath the tree.

In Venezuelan, the stomach contents of 2 margays contained the remains of three spiny pocket mice, a cane rat and a squirrel. Of these three items of prey, the squirrel was the only one which is arboreal.

In Chiapas, Mexico it has been reported that the margay preyed on field mice, rabbits and young pacas and agoutis. These are all ground dwelling animals.

In Panama, a margay's stomach contents contained the remains of a common opossum.

In Brazil the stomach contents of another margay contained the remains of a guinea pig, the fur and bones of a water rat and the feathers of a tinamou.

In Belize it was found that the climbing rat was the most common element of the margay's diet. It occurred in almost half of the 27 faeces collected.

Fruit occurred in 14% of the samples of faeces taken from margays in Belize. Insects were found in the third of the faeces (scats).

As to the actual method of hunting and killing prey this would be very similar to the domestic cat's methods which means stalking, pouncing and then killing often by a bite to the nape of the neck to sever the spinal cord.

I hope that answers the question in the title.

Source: Myself and Wild Cats Of The World by the Sunquists.

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