猫 Cat

貓（學名：Felis silvestris catus），俗称貓咪，通常指向家貓，為小型貓科動物，是為野貓（又稱斑貓；Felis silvestris）中的亞種^[1]，此外也有其它未經過《國際動物命名法規》認可的命名，例如Felis catus。人類從古代就有養貓的紀錄，於5,000年前完全將其馴化^{[來源請求]}，古埃及人飼養貓來捕鼠及其他齧齒目動物，以防止牠們吃掉谷物。現在，貓成為世界上最為廣泛的寵物之一，飼養率僅次於犬。貓的平均壽命為12年。

品種被認證的貓會稱為純種貓，主人會讓貓繁殖出他們認為趨于“完美”的物種（參見選擇繁殖）。

The domestic cat^[1][2] (Felis catus or Felis silvestris catus)^[2][4] is a small, usually furry, domesticated, and carnivorous mammal. They are often called housecatswhen kept as an indoor pet or simply cats when there is no need to distinguish them from other felids and felines.^[6] Cats are often valued by humans for companionship and their ability to hunt vermin.

Cats are similar in anatomy to the other felids, with strong, flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws, and teeth adapted to killing small prey. Cat senses fit acrepuscular and predatory ecological niche. Cats can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by mice and other small animals. They can see in near darkness. Like most other mammals, cats have poorer color vision and a better sense of smell than humans.

Despite being solitary hunters, cats are a social species and cat communication includes the use of a variety of vocalizations (mewing, purring, trilling, hissing, growlingand grunting), as well as cat pheromones and types of cat-specific body language.^[7]

Cats have a high breeding rate. Under controlled breeding, they can be bred and shown as registered pedigree pets, a hobby known as cat fancy. Failure to control the breeding of pet cats by neutering and the abandonment of former household pets has resulted in large numbers of feral cats worldwide, requiring population control.^[8]This has contributed, along with habitat destruction and other factors, to extinction of many bird species. Cats have been known to extirpate a bird species within a specific region and may have contributed to extinction of isolated island populations.^[9] Cats are thought to be primarily, though not solely responsible, for the extinction of 33 species of birds and the presence of feral and free ranging cats makes some locations unsuitable for attempted species reestablishment in otherwise suitable locations.^[10]

Since cats were venerated in ancient Egypt, they were commonly believed to have been domesticated there,^[11] but there may have been instances of domestication as early as the Neolithic from around 9,500 years ago (7,500 BC).^[12] A genetic study in 2007 concluded that domestic cats are descended from African wildcats (Felis silvestris lybica), having diverged around 8,000 BC in West Asia.^[11][13] Cats are the most popular pet in the world, and are now found in almost every place where humans live.^[14]