The wild cats, family Felidae, are all active predators; they range in size from
ID: 179392 • Letter: T
Question
The wild cats, family Felidae, are all active predators; they range in size from about a kilogram to several hundred kilograms, and they also vary in the complexity of their coat color. Some cats like caracals, pumas, and lions have uniformly colored coats. Other cats, including ocelots, bobcats, and leopards have a lighter background color marked with blotches and/or streaks of darker color. Coat coloration is frequently said to be an adaptation that allows for camouflage and therefore better hunting, but how would you test the idea that the variation seen among different species of cats was the product of adapting to different environments, and becoming better camouflaged? If no preliminary data was available, on relatedness of cat species, or coat pattern, what data would you collect to complete your test? The wild cats, family Felidae, are all active predators; they range in size from about a kilogram to several hundred kilograms, and they also vary in the complexity of their coat color. Some cats like caracals, pumas, and lions have uniformly colored coats. Other cats, including ocelots, bobcats, and leopards have a lighter background color marked with blotches and/or streaks of darker color
. Coat coloration is frequently said to be an adaptation that allows for camouflage and therefore better hunting, but how would you test the idea that the variation seen among different species of cats was the product of adapting to different environments, and becoming better camouflaged? If no preliminary data was available, on relatedness of cat species, or coat pattern, what data would you collect to complete your test? The wild cats, family Felidae, are all active predators; they range in size from about a kilogram to several hundred kilograms, and they also vary in the complexity of their coat color. Some cats like caracals, pumas, and lions have uniformly colored coats. Other cats, including ocelots, bobcats, and leopards have a lighter background color marked with blotches and/or streaks of darker color
. Coat coloration is frequently said to be an adaptation that allows for camouflage and therefore better hunting, but how would you test the idea that the variation seen among different species of cats was the product of adapting to different environments, and becoming better camouflaged? If no preliminary data was available, on relatedness of cat species, or coat pattern, what data would you collect to complete your test?
Explanation / Answer
Morphological appearance remains one of the major sources of camouflage in animals. For this purpose, the external appearance of animals is usually modified for physical intermixing of the animal with its surroundings. This form of camouflage is displayed by a variety of animals and reptiles including insects and reptiles. Particularly, large wild cats also display this form of camouflage. They have specialized appearance of thier coat color and patterns so that they might not be recognized discretely in their environment. This helps them to be a better predator and help them to protect themselves from predators as well.
For analysis purpose, the variety of coat appearance in different species of wild cats with respect to their geographical locations should be recorded as a preliminary data.
However, if this preliminary data is not available for recording purpose, the secondary data can also be collected such as relative population of the prey of large wild cats in a geographical area. For example, if small wild deers represent the prey of the large wild cat say leopard and one is not able to directly count the number and appearance of the leopards in this area, then the relative change in frequency of wild deers can be utilized to estimate the extent of camouflage of wild leopards and their fitness for that area.
Thus, the secondary data collection can be utilized to assess the extent of camouflage of large wild cats in an area.
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