Like many species, big cats have fur and coat patterns that blend into their habitat providing them with the perfect camouflage (Kitchener, 1991). The big cats have coat patterns and coloring that help them blend in. Having this camouflage helps the big cats stay hidden so they can sneak up and surprise their prey (NHPBS, 2021).
The stripes of the tiger help it blend in when in tall grass with the orange coloration blending in with the grass and the black stripes blending in with the shadows (NHPBS, 2021). The spotted big cats - leopards, jaguars, and cheetahs - have spots that help them blend into their environment in a similar way that the tigers stripes help them blend in. The lighter fur helps them blend in with the grass and other surroundings, while the spots blend in with the shadows (NHPBS, 2021). The spots, also known as disruptive coloration, help break up the outline of the cat, making it difficult for other animals, like their prey, to see them (NHPBS, 2021). It is also believed that the more time a cat spends in the trees, the more spotted it is, especially with irregular and complex patterns, like in the jaguar and leopard (Allen, et al., 2010).
The lion and puma are both solid colors, as adults, and this allows them to blend into their environments.
Literature Cited:
Allen, W.L., Cuthill, I.C., Scott-Samuel, N.E., & Baddeley, R. (2010). Why the leopard got its
spots: Relating pattern development to ecology in felids. Proc Biol Sci, 278(1710), 1373-1380. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2010.1734
Animal Planet. (2018, December 10). Camouflage: A closer look with Dave Salmoni [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/9pli7-vGGZs
Kitchener, A. (1991). The natural history of the wild cats. Christopher Helm Ltd, and Cornell University Press.
New Hampshire PBS. (2021). Nature works: Deceptive coloration.
Comments