"The Taming of the Cat" by Carlos A. Driscoll

Selected Works of Stephen O'Brien

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The Taming of the Cat

Scientific American

Carlos A. Driscoll, University of Oxford; National Cancer Institute at Frederick
Juliet Clutton-Brock, International Council for Archaeozoology
Andrew C. Kitchener, National Museums Scotland
Stephen J. O'Brien, National Cancer Institute at Frederick

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Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-1-2009

Disciplines

Abstract

This article discusses research into the evolution of domesticated cats, which is complicated by the fact that they do not appear to serve humans. Although several species are morphologically similar, genetic research focusing on mitochondrial DNA and genetic microsatellites found that domesticated cats descended from F. sylvestris lybica. Archaeological research indicating cats came to live with humans as the prevalence of house mice in agricultural settlements increased is noted. Insets: The House Cat's Ancestor; Early Domestication; From Wild to Mild; The Truth about Cats and Dogs

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ORCID ID

0000-0001-7353-8301

ResearcherID

N-1726-2015

Citation Information

Carlos A. Driscoll, Juliet Clutton-Brock, Andrew C. Kitchener and Stephen J. O'Brien. "The Taming of the Cat" Scientific American Vol. 300 Iss. 6 (2009) p. 68 - 75 ISSN: 0036-8733
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/stephen-obrien/637/