Domestic cat
Amazing fact
Domestic cats use whiskers on the muzzle, eyebrows and elbows to sense airflow and avoid obstacles in dim light.
University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
Domestic cats use whiskers on the muzzle, eyebrows and elbows to sense airflow and avoid obstacles in dim light.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Domestic cat
- Scientific name
- Felis catus
- Japanese name
- イエネコ（ネコ）
- Group
- Land mammals
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Felidae
- Genus
- Felis
The domestic cat is a domesticated animal, most likely descended from African or Asian wild cats.
It is found on every continent except Antarctica, mostly in and around places where people live.
Its tongue is covered with many backward-facing, hook-like bumps that it uses to comb and clean its fur.
By rubbing against things and sharpening its claws, it leaves its own scent behind as a mark.
How the Domestic cat lives
It is active at night. Feral domestic cats may hunt rodents or birds. When walking, it usually keeps its claws retracted. It communicates with other domestic cats through body language and sounds.
University of Michigan Animal Diversity WebBasic data
- Size
- average 76.2 cm
- Weight
- 4.1–5.4 kg
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)
- Diet
- Rodents and birds
Where the Domestic cat has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- イエネコ（ネコ）
- 简体中文
- 家猫
- 繁體中文
- 貓
- 한국어
- 고양이
- Español
- Gato doméstico
- Français
- Chat domestique
- Deutsch
- Hauskatze
- Português (Brasil)
- Gato doméstico
- Italiano
- Gatto domestico
- العربية
- السِّنَّور البرّي
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Kucing Domestik
- Русский
- Кошка
- Türkçe
- Kedi
- ไทย
- แมวบ้าน
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web — Felis catusChecked: 2026-11-04
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
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