What did modern day cats evolve from?

The domestic cat originated from Near-Eastern and Egyptian populations of the African wildcat, Felis sylvestris lybica. The family Felidae, to which all living feline species belong, arose about ten to eleven million years ago.

What would life be like without cats?

Without cats, there’s a lot of rat-mouths to feed. Our agricultural systems would collapse, and now with disease rampant, and food scarce, humans would be forced to scrounge for scraps… kind of like rats! But humans aren’t the only ones who have to worry.

Were cats supposed to be domesticated?

At no point were cats domesticated by humans. House cats today are offshoots of a particular branch of this species, Felis silvestris lybica, which began to cohabit with humans some 12,000 years ago in parts of the Near East that now form part of Turkey, Iraq and Israel.

How did cats get domesticated?

Domesticated cats all come from wildcats called Felis silvestris lybica that originated in the Fertile Crescent in the Near East Neolithic period and in ancient Egypt in the Classical period. National Photo Co. Other scientists have also discovered another potential instance of cat domestication.

When did cats get domesticated?

7500 BC
Cats were first domesticated in the Near East around 7500 BC. It was long thought that cat domestication began in ancient Egypt, where cats were venerated from around 3100 BC. As of 2021, there are an estimated 220 million owned and 480 million stray cats in the world.

What would happen to cats if humans went extinct?

In the event of a human extinction, most domesticated species, besides some “wilder” breeds of sheep and cows, would quickly die off at the hands of wild predators. “Cats are a very successful non-native species all over the world,” says Alan Weisman, author of “The World Without Us.” “Everywhere they go they thrive.”

What would happen if cats went extinct?

If the approximately 220 million domestic cats in the world all bit the dust, seabird populations would likely fall worldwide, while the populations of non-cat predators that prey on rats would be expected to increase. “All species have an impact,” Beck said.

How did humans domesticate cats?

By analyzing the ancient DNA of cat remains found in port cities, the scientists concluded that cats were brought along on ships, most likely to help protect food storages on board by killing rodents (Ottoni and others 2017). This allowed cats to spread across the world.