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Quirks and Quarks

Cat facts the latest science on our feline companions

How cats became domesticated, how they purr and make faces, and forensic cat science

How cats became domesticated, how they purr and make faces, and forensic cat science

Close up of cat face, eyes are wide
A new study suggests cats have over 250 facial expressions, like this one (Katherine Holland/CBC)

Originally published on Dec. 2, 2023



This week, a special edition of Quirks & Quarks with Bob McDonald: Cat facts the latest science on our feline companions:

Catfaces are more expressive than you think

A new study suggests that cats can make more than 250 different facial expressions to each other, using unique positions of their eyes, ears and facial muscles to communicate subtle changes in mood. Researchers recorded videos at a Los Angeles cat cafe to study the facial expressions the animals make while interacting among themselves. Brittany Florkiewicz, assistant professor of psychology at Lyon College in Arkansas and a co-author of the new study, said the majority of those expressions could be categorized as either friendly or unfriendly. This research was published in Behavioral Processes.

Cats can get sick with coronaviruses and get better with COVID-19 antivirals

A lethal cat coronavirus that causes feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), which has previously been considered incurable, could be controlled by some of the antivirals that have proven effective in the SarS-Cov-2 pandemic. Feline infectious disease specialist Danielle Gunn-Moore tested antiviral drugs in a population of over 300 cats, and found that treatment was effective in 85 per cent of the animals. This study was published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery.

Two white cats sit in a shaded street.
Cyprus veterinarians association on Friday Aug. 4, 2023 lauded a government decision to allow its stock of human coronavirus medication to be used on cats to fight a local mutation of a feline virus that has killed thousands of animals on the Mediterranean island. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Cats are built to purr

The cat'spurr is an unusually low sound for such a small animal. University of Vienna professor Tecumseh W. Fitch studied the physiology of cat larynges the organ in the back of the throat involved in breathing and sound production, also known as the voice box to figure out how cats can produce this sound. In his research, which was published in Current Biology, he identified a pair of fatty pads that help slow down the vibration of the vocal folds to make the low-frequency rumbling.

Cat in purring posture
The unmistakable purring posture of a cat (Lyzaville Sale/CBC)

Cats can make it harder to get away with murder

Scientists in the UK have developed a new DNA test that can more precisely identify cat hair, which they think can be used to identify criminals who pick up, or leave behind, shed hairs at a crime scene. Mark Jobling and his colleagues at the University of Leicester developed a sensitive test for mitochondrial DNA that can be extracted from cat hair. This study was published in the journal Forensic Science International: Genetics.

Cay in cage
Cat hair may be a secret weapon for forensic scientists (David Bajer/CBC)

Even when they're curled up in your lap, cats have "one paw in the wild"

Evolutionary biologist Jonathan B. Losos, author of the new book The Cat's Meow: How the Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa, shares more new research on how cats came to command our lives, how humans have created over 73 breeds of Felis catus, and why, after all this time, cats are only semi-domesticated, with one paw still in the wild.

WATCH: Cats inspire poetry in the future.