Domestic Cat
Scientific name: Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758
Overview
The cat, also called domestic cat and house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is a member of Felidae, the family of mammals in the order Carnivora also colloquially referred to as cats. An obligate carnivore, requiring a predominantly meat-based diet, it has retractable claws adapted to killing small prey species such as mice and rats. It has a strong, flexible body, quick reflexes, and sharp teeth, and its night vision and sense of smell are well developed. It is a social species, but a solitary hunter and a crepuscular predator. Cat communication includes meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, grunting, body language, and scent marking. It can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by small mammals. It secretes and perceives pheromones. Cat intelligence is evident in its ability to adapt, learn through observation, and solve problems. The domestic cat is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae.
From the Wikipedia article “Cat”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Africa; Australia; Caribbean; Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China); Middle America; North America; Oceania; South America; Southern Asia.
Common names
Also known in English as cat.
Names in other languages (3)
- Arabic
- السِّنَّور البرّي, الضَيْوَن, القط البرِّي, قط منزلي
- Japanese
- ヨーロッパヤマネコ
- Russian
- кошка
Related animals
Sources
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Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — names in other languages. Q20980826, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Cat”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Alvesgaspar, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026