Tag: britain

Breed Profiles

The Scottish Wildcat: Ghosts of the Highlands

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Meredith Hemphill

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Once upon a time, the British Isles were home to several large predators, including fierce felines. Massive cave lions roamed the land 14,000 years ago (4). More recently, smaller cats like lynx shared the forests with wolves and bears (2, 4). Now, they’re all gone, except for one rugged hold-out. Felis silvestris grampia, a subspecies of the European wildcat known as the Scottish Wildcat or Highland Tiger, is Britain’s last native cat. And they’re hanging on by a claw-tip.

Scottish Wildcat crouching in grass
Photo by Sean Paul Kinnear on Unsplash

This week, we’re doing a different kind of breed profile. As fascinating as the different breeds of domestic cat are, there are many species of wild cats, big and small, that deserve our attention as well. A lot of them are endangered. The least we can do is learn their stories.

A Brief History of Wildcats

Wildcats are a specific kind of wild cat. They are small feline predators that first came on the scene in Europe about 2 million years ago in the form of Martelli’s wildcat, Felis lunensis (2, 8). Martelli’s wildcat became the modern wildcat about 0.35-0.45 million years ago (2). The early wildcats lived in a heavily forested Europe. However, they later expanded their range into Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, where they formed five or six subspecies, depending upon who you ask (2).

According to the International Society for Endangered Cats Canada, current taxonomy recognizes the European wildcat, F. silvestris silvestris; the Scottish wildcat, F. silvestris grampia; the Caucasian wildcat, F. silvestris caucasia; the Near Eastern wildcat, F. lybica lybica; the Southern African wildcat, F. lybica cafra; and the Asian wildcat, F. lybica ornata. The Scottish wildcat is considered by some taxonomists to be a population of European wildcats rather than a distinct species (2, 4). Whether or not this is true now, it was certainly the case at one time. About 10,000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age, receding glaciers trapped a group of European wildcats on the British Isles (2, 8). Their descendants became the Scottish wildcat (2, 8).

For thousands of years, Scottish wildcats roamed the entirety of Britain, masters of the thick forests that then covered the land. But the first signs of trouble were already brewing. Far to the south, their cousins F. l. lybica had given rise to a new creature, the domestic cat. And the two great threats to the Scottish wildcat are humans, unsurprisingly, and their domestic cats. Domestic cat bones have been recovered from Iron Age sites in Britain (2). But at the time, a few housecats probably weren’t a big deal to a thriving wildcat population. Only after years of human persecution would domestic cats become the catastrophic threat to Scottish wildcats that they are today.

Celebrity or Vermin?

Clan Chattan crest featuring Scottish Wildcat
Clan Chattan crest – Scots Connection

As humans began to cut down Britain’s forests and form societies based on agriculture, they formed a strained relationship with the Scottish wildcat to say the least. On the one hand, for some the fierce, untamed, and independent animal in their midst was a source of pride. Wildcats have been incorporated into heraldry since the 1200s (2). In Scotland, Clan Chattan, a super-clan formed by an alliance of other clans, includes a wildcat in their crest, for example (2, 4). The “clan of the wildcat,” as they’re known, has as their motto “touch not the cat without a glove” (2, 4).

Yet for all the apparent pride in this native cat species, the Scottish wildcat’s human neighbors once chose to kill them en masse. It was bad enough that deforestation destroyed most of their habitat, but the wildcats did a pretty good job of adapting to the moor open wild places that remained in the wake of the devastation (8). As long as there was still prey to eat, they seemed to manage all right. Not spectacular, but all right.

Unfortunately, wildcats were hunted for their furs for a long time (2, 4). Wildcats were also killed because farmers believed they hunted livestock, even larger animals like sheep (2, 4). Whether Scottish wildcats actually took livestock any larger than chickens is very much in doubt, but the belief was enough for many of the cats to be killed as a form of “predator control.” The rise of sporting estates in the mid-nineteenth century was especially detrimental to the Scottish wildcat population (2). These estates would keep game birds for sport hunting, and because Scottish wildcats eat birds, they were not tolerated on these estates (2). Gamekeepers exterminated wildcats in great numbers (2).

Perhaps the only thing that saved the Scottish wildcat from extinction was World War I (2, 5). Many of the gamekeepers and farmers who killed wildcats went off to war, giving the species a short break to recover their numbers a bit (2, 5). But in many ways it was too late. The last documented wildcat sighting in England was in 1849 (4, 9). The species had been driven out of England and Wales entirely, up into the northwest recesses of Scotland, and it has expanded its range little since. Scottish wildcats were given legal protection in 1988 (7), but threats both new and old continue to threaten the survival of Britain’s last native cat.

What Makes the Scottish Wildcat Special?

Appearance

It is surprisingly difficult to define exactly what a Scottish wildcat should look like. That’s because they can interbreed with domestic cats, and have been doing so with increasing frequency. There may have been hybridization since the Iron Age, when domestic cats first arrived (2). As no Iron Age wildcats are still around for reference, biologists have had a hard time pinning down the type-specimen look for a Scottish wildcat. But they have reached a workable consensus.

Scottish wildcats are larger than domestic cats, although estimates range from 25-100% larger (5-8). A Victorian-era account describes unearthing a wildcat skeleton that was four feet (1.23 m) long from nose to tail tip (8)! Most today seem to be smaller than that, but then most today are probably also wildcat/domestic hybrids. The pre-Iron Age Scottish wildcat was probably a substantial cat, indeed.

Some Wild Cats have been taken in this kingdom of a most enormous size. We recollect one having been killed in the county of Cumberland, which measured, from nose to the end of its tail, upwards of five feet.


Thomas Bewick, A General History of Quadrupeds, 1790

Besides its larger size, the Scottish wildcat looks similar to a brown tabby domestic cat, and in fact the two are often confused. The extensive hybridization between wildcats and housecats only complicates matters. But there are some key differences. Scottish wildcats have flatter heads with ears positioned more toward the sides (9). They have much larger jaws than domestic cats (8). Usually the easiest difference to spot is the tail, which is broad and blunt-tipped, not tapering like a domestic cat’s (2, 6-8). That’s a trait our house panthers inherited from their Near Eastern wildcat ancestors (2). Internally, Scottish wildcats have a much larger cranial capacity than domestic cats (6). They also have shorter guts (6).

The coat markings are one of the most-frequently used methods of distinguishing a wildcat from a domestic cat from a hybrid, simply because in many cases that is all conservation workers have to go on. Seven key points have been established for determining visually if a cat is a wildcat, hybrid, or domestic cat (2, 5). A cat can score a 1, 2, or 3 in each of the seven categories, with 3 indicating the most wildcat-like and 1 the most domestic-like (2). Different organizations use different cut-off points for what they consider wildcat enough. 17 seems to be a common choice.

Seven point pelage score system
7-point Pelage Score (7PS) System – National Museums Scotland
  1. Nape stripes: wildcat has four that are broad, wavy, and unfused
  2. Shoulder stripes: wildcat has two distinct stripes
  3. Flank stripes: wildcat has unbroken stripes
  4. Dorsal stripe: wildcat dorsal stripe always stops at the base of the tail
  5. Hindquarters: wildcat may have broken stripes but must not have spots
  6. Tail bands: wildcat has distinct tail bands that completely encircle the tail
  7. Tail tip: wildcat has blunt, black tail tip

White fur is not naturally part of the Scottish wildcat gene pool, so white fur anywhere means interbreeding (7-9). Wildcats have light brown fur on their muzzles and underbellies instead (8).

How to identify a Scottish wildcat

Habits and Habitat

Scottish wildcats currently live in Scotland north of the urban and industrial Central Belt that runs from Glasgow to Edinburgh (2, 5). Although they are restricted to the highlands, they don’t care for the high-altitude life and are not usually found more than 2,625 feet (800 m) above sea level (6, 9). They have adapted to a variety of habitats, now occupying dense forests, woodland edges, pastures, tree plantations, and open grassland (6, 7, 9).

The primary prey of Scottish wildcats is rabbits and hares, seconded by smaller mammals (4, 6, 7-9). As one of the last sizable predators left in Britain, Scottish wildcats play an important ecological role in controlling the populations of these small mammals (8). Scottish wildcats will also eat birds, bugs, lizards, fish, and even fresh carrion, depending upon what’s available (4, 6, 7-9). Legends of wildcats bringing down deer and other large animals may have come from sightings of them eating the recently-deceased animals (8).

Scottish wildcats are solitary animals, socializing only when it’s time to mate (6, 8, 9). Unlike domestic cats, which mate year-round, Scottish wildcats have a defined mating season and produce a single litter of kittens each year (6, 7-9). They mate in the winter, from January to March, and the kittens are typically born in April and May (6, 7-9). Each litter averages 2-4 kittens (6, 7-9). The mother raises the kittens by herself for the next six months, at which point they are independent enough to strike out on their own (6, 8).

Teetering on the Brink of Extinction

Scottish wildcats are very reclusive and avoid humans, which makes it difficult to assess how many of them are left in the wild. None of the numbers are uplifting, unfortunately. Estimates range from about 30 to 430 individuals (7). Data from the mid-2010s puts the number in the neighborhood of 100-300 wildcats, which is better than 30 but still extremely low (6).

The primary threat to the Scottish wildcat today is domestic cats. The two species hybridize easily and produce fertile offspring. That wouldn’t be a big deal if it only happened occasionally. However, wildcat numbers have decreased drastically while the number of feral, stray, and outdoor cats has done just the opposite. Domestic cats may outnumber wildcats by as much as 3000:1 (8). This means that Scottish wildcats have a hard time finding other wildcats to mate with, but no trouble at all encountering domestic cats. Wildcats are being bred into oblivion.

Taxidermy Scottish wildcat
Scottish wildcat on exhibit at the National Museum of Scotland – National Museums Scotland

As if that weren’t enough, wildcats are also susceptible to the diseases of the domestic cat (5, 6, 8). Communicable diseases such as Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV), Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV), and cat flu can easily be spread from feral cat populations to Scottish wildcats (5, 6). Habitat loss and fragmentation continue to contribute to declines in wildcat populations, and wildcats are still killed by predator control measures (6, 8).

Sometimes this is intentional, although illegal, but it can also be accidental. Bullets meant for feral cats or snare traps meant for foxes–both legal–can injure or kill wildcats just as easily (2, 6, 8). It is hard enough to tell the difference between domestic cats, hybrids, and wildcats in good lighting and with calm nerves, but when an animal is menacing your pheasants in the dark of night, it can be impossible to judge.

Ghost in the Genes

Conservationists have been working to save the Scottish wildcat for upwards of thirty years. Research, education, and captive breeding are important aspects of their work. In particular, genetic research to better determine which cats are true wildcats has been a priority in recent years. Genetic methods, while sometimes helpful, revealed a crushing truth.

In 2018, researchers at the Wildgenes Lab at Edinburgh Zoo announced that they had found Scottish wildcats to be so thoroughly hybridized with domestic cats as to be part of the same gene pool (3). In other words, as best they could tell, there are no true wildcats left in the British wilderness. The fittingly ominous term for this a “hybrid swarm” (2, 3). The team declared the Scottish wildcat functionally extinct in the wild (3). The only hope left for the species resides in the captive wildcat population, which was found to have stronger Scottish wildcat genetics (3).

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland has plans to release wildcats from their breeding program in 2022 (1). Up to 60 Scottish wildcats are hopefully going to be released in Highland Wildlife Park in Kincraig (1). But there’s a lot that will need to be done aside from adding more wildcats to the highlands.

What Can We Do to Help?

Scottish wildcat conservation groups are adamant that the single best thing we can do for wildcats right now is get a handle on the domestic cats. British cat owners need to make sure their pets are sterilized and vaccinated (1, 2, 5, 6). Good advice generally, but in this case it prevents hybridization and the spread of diseases. Wildcats can’t just take a trip to the vet if they get sick! When possible, help to TNVR–trap, neuter, vaccinate, and return–feral cats in your community (2). There are lots of organizations you can volunteer with that do this incredible work that helps community cats and wildcats.

You can adopt a Scottish Wildcat housed in the Edinburgh Zoo captive breeding program. This helps pay for the care of the captive wildcats as well as the breeding program which will hopefully lead to the release of lots of Scottish Wildcats into the wild.

Should happen to see a Scottish wildcat, you can report the sighting to the Scottish Wildcat Action project to help with Scottish wildcat research and conservation. Even if you aren’t 100% sure it was a wildcat, I recommend reporting it anyway. Conservationists still want to preserve the wildcat population in the wild, hybrid swarm that it might be, and they can’t do that work if they don’t know where the cats are. Every data point helps.

Finally, if you are able, consider donating to the conservation organizations that are hard at work trying to save this incredible species, such as Save the Wildcats or Wildcat Haven,

Highland Wildlife Park welcomed two Scottish wildcat kittens in 2013

Works Cited

  1. Keane, K. (2019, November 19). Captivity-bred wildcats to be released into wild in Cairngorms. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-50464091
  2. Macdonald, D.W., Yamaguchi, N., Kitchener, A.C., Daniels, M., et al. (2010). Reversing cryptic extinction: The history, present, and future of the Scottish wildcat. In D. Macdonald and A. Loveridge (Eds.), The biology and conservation of wild felids (pp. 471-491). OUP Oxford.
  3. Macdonald, K. (2018, December 20). Scotland’s wildcats ‘functionally extinct’ in the wild. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-46617965
  4. Mancini, M. (2016, September 13). 11 fierce facts about Scottish wildcats. Mental Floss. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/85793/11-fierce-facts-about-scottish-wildcats
  5. National Museums Scotland. (n.d.). Scottish wildcat. https://www.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/natural-world/scottish-wildcat/
  6. Scottish Wildcat Action. (n.d.). Wildcat FAQs. https://www.scottishwildcataction.org/about-wildcats/
  7. The Mammal Society. (n.d.). Scottish wildcat guide: how to identify, where they live, and conservation efforts. Discover Wildlife. https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/facts-about-scottish-wildcats/
  8. Wildcat Haven. (n.d.). The Scottish wildcat. https://www.wildcathaven.com/scottish-wildcat
  9. Woodland Trust. (n.d.). Scottish wildcat. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/animals/mammals/scottish-wildcat/

Published January 19, 2021

Updated May 12th, 2023

Breed Profiles

Manx: The Rabbit Cats

mehshadoweye

Meredith Hemphill

mehshadoweye

Encyclopaedia Felidae now has a Patreon! Go to www.patreon.com/EncyclopaediaFelidae if you want to help support this content!

Gray tabby cat with no tail
Gray tabby Manx – Image by spicetree687 from Pixabay

Hundreds of years ago on a little island in the Irish Sea, humans first began to notice a curious kind of cat wandering about. It looked largely like a normal cat, except it had no tail! Within the small cat population of the Isle of Man, this odd trait soon became quite widespread, and eventually quite sought-after. The Manx breed can still be found on its home island but is now a beloved yet rare breed worldwide. In this article we’re going to explore this fascinating breed from theirs noses to the tips of their–well, wherever they may end.

Breed Characteristics

Re: That Tail

The lack of a tail is the most striking and famous feature of the breed, but not all Manx are tailless. There are four categories of Manx based on tail length. Those without tails are called rumpies. They have a shallow depression at the end of their spines where the tail would normally be. Some don’t have tails, but they do have three fused vertebrae at the base of the spine which lift up when the cat’s back is stroked. Such cats are called rumpy risers. Stumpies have very short tails, and longies have normal or close to normal length tails. Tails intermediate between the latter two are also possible. Regardless of tail length, they are still considered Manx cats, although only rumpies and rumpy risers are allowed in the show ring,

The wide variety of tail lengths seen in the breed, often in the same litter, is due to the genetics of the unusual trait. Four mutations have been identified that cause the tailless trait in Manx cats, but they all seem to behave in the same way (1). The mutations are dominant, but with partial penetrance. This means that any cat with a copy of the mutation would be expected to display the tailless trait, but sometimes they do and sometimes they have a less dramatically foreshortened tail. The science behind the Manx tail is still under investigation. Researchers are interested in it because of what these cats may be able to teach us about how the spine develops in mammals in general (i.e. humans), and how that sometimes goes wrong.

Tabby cat without tail
Silverwing, a champion Manx show cat in 1902 – Wikimedia Creative Commons

Manx have at most one copy of a tailless mutation. This is because having two mutant copies of the gene does cause things to go wrong during development. How, exactly, is unknown, as these kittens rarely survive long enough to be born. This is one of the reasons why Manx usually have small litters. Some kittens will inevitably inherit two mutant copies. Of course, this raises ethical questions about deliberately breeding these cats, knowing that some kittens will die. How many kittens, we can only guess using genetics and mathematics.

All other things being equal, in a mating of two parents, each carrying one mutant allele, about 25% of their offspring would inherit two mutant alleles and die. Responsible breeders can decrease those numbers by including longies in the breeding pool, as they are likely to not carry any mutant alleles. Do we trust breeders to make the right decisions? And do we accept that some kittens will still probably die even when a breeder is doing their best to avoid it? The kittens don’t suffer as far as we know. It’s a sticky dilemma. When we circle back around to some more biology later, there will be even more tough questions. But first, let’s go over something lighter.

General Appearance

Given that Manx can have normal tails, the lack of one is obviously not the only defining characteristic of the breed. Perhaps the most common adjective used to describe the appearance of Manx is “round.” They have round heads with large, round eyes and round cheeks that make them look a bit jowly. They’re hind legs are much longer than their forelegs, and this causes their backs to arch from shoulders to rump, thereby making their whole body look round. They have a stout body and broad chest with muscular, round haunches.

I repeatedly saw the ears described as looking like a cradle from the back, and frankly, I have no idea what that means. They just look like cat ears to me, but maybe that will strike a chord with someone else. Manx can come in any color or pattern under the sun, although the Cat Fanciers Association does not allow lavender or chocolate, or the color-point pattern, because they indicate hybridization. They may be short- or long-haired. Both have a double coat which can require weekly grooming, more during shedding seasons.

Manx playing fetch

Personality

Manx are known for being friendly and people-oriented. They are quiet cats, but will have conversations with their people in a soft trill like that used by mother cats to communicate with their kittens. Manx are typically very mellow, but they are fiercely loyal and are quite the guard-cats. They may go on the offensive if they perceive a threat. Strange dogs are the most likely to bear the brunt of real aggression. Familiar dogs, however, can be great friends.

Manx who are socialized to other pets and children when young do very well with them. Older Manx may take time to adjust if they aren’t used to such creatures, so give them time. Cats are creatures of habit, after all. Though not an extremely active breed, Manx are very playful and intelligent. They like to learn tricks and solve puzzles. Multiple Manx in the same household have a curious and amusing tendency to chase each other in circles.

Despite the often missing or short tail, Manx do not struggle with balance and are excellent hunters and jumpers. Their powerful back legs can get them into most high places, so be sure to lock up anything you don’t want them to have. Hiding it in a cupboard or on a tall shelf will not keep it away from a determined Manx. These cats are thought to have particularly robust inner ears to help them maintain their balance, something most cats would use their tails to aid in.

History (Maybe)

There were no native European wild cats on the Isle of Man when the domestic cats first arrived. On that much, there is a consensus. Beyond that, no one is certain when or how domestic cats came to the island, or why they came to have such a strange mutation. Even scientists are still in flux about the latter. Of course, the locals have much more interesting stories.

One common theory holds that a ship wrecked near the Isle of Man. The ship had cats, as most would have, and these swam to shore and colonized the island. The sailors were not so lucky. Another version of this story would have it that there were already cats on the island, and the tailless feline survivor(s) of the shipwreck were the genesis of the Manx breed. The origin of the ship in the story varies, as well. Often it’s a ship (or two) from the Spanish Armada that wrecked in 1588, but at least two other shipwrecks are considered possible sources. It has also been speculated that the Vikings brought cats, or at least that they brought the long-haired cats. We will probably never know for sure.

Northern island coastline
The Isle of Man – Photo by Smergen from FreeImages

We now know why Manx cats sometimes have no tails, but the first linguistic reference to the tailless cats on the Isle of Man was in the mid-eighteenth century (2). The residents couldn’t have known about genetic mutations. So they came up with their own ideas. One theory took into account the stumpy or absent tail and long legs of Manx cats, which sometimes have a hoppy gait, and decided that they were not cats but cabbits, the offspring of a cross between cats and rabbits. This theory really raises more questions than it answers, but Manx do look a little bit bunny-like. Needless to say, cabbits are biologically impossible.

Another story went that when Noah built the Ark to save two of every animal from God’s flood (see the Book of Genesis), the Manx cats were running late. Does this mean Noah took two of every breed of cat on board? The story doesn’t elaborate. But the rains were about the start and Noah had already started the door closing when the cats were running up the gangplank. They made it through–but their tails didn’t.

Maybe the most gruesome story yet goes that Viking or Irish warriors used to steal Manx kittens to cut off their tails. They would use the tails to adorn their helmets as good luck charms. The mother cats did not take kindly to this, but they were no match for the warriors. So they did the best they could. They bit off their kittens’ tails to save them from a worse fate.

Thankfully, no Manx actually had their tails cut off in the making of, well, Manx. However cats came to the island, after that a random mutation that caused the tailless trait arose. This trait is detrimental to reproductive success and sometimes the individual. Manx have compensated for the lack of balance, but that may have come at the Darwinian expense of tailless cats that could not. Even if not, cats use their tails for communication as well. There are also health problems associated with the trait, not to mention that having two copies of the mutation is lethal. So why did it become so widespread?

The traditional explanation was genetic drift, the phenomenon by which a trait changes in frequency in a population by random chance. In other words, it just kind of happened. In small, inbred populations, this is pretty common. Try out a simulation of genetic drift here if you’re interested in seeing how this works. However, a study in 1980 found that the tailless trait would become stable in a population, despite the lethality, as long as sperm carrying the dominant mutant allele had an advantage during fertilization (3). While the study was mathematical in nature, it gives a strong indication of why the Manx trait may have been so persistent on the Isle of Man (3). She-cats frequently mate with multiple toms while in heat, so that selective fertilization advantage could make a difference.

Health Concerns

This is its own section for a reason. Manx are wonderful companions and can make great pets, but no one wants to get a sick cat they weren’t prepared for. Manx don’t have very many breed-specific health problems, but the ones they do have can be severe. They usually appear early in life, by four months at the latest, so if you purchase from a breeder, be very cautious of anyone willing to part with kittens before the age of four months.

Silver coin
Coin from Isle of Man showing a Manx cat – Isle of Man Post Office (https://www.iompost.com/)

Manx are prone to corneal dystrophy, a progressive cloudy buildup in the cornea of the eye. It typically appears by four months. It can cause vision loss and blindness, depending upon the severity, but cats can learn to cope with blindness well.

The worst concern with these cats is Manx syndrome, a group of conditions that can co-occur in Manx cats. It’s most common when rumpies are bred to rumpies for multiple generations but sometimes crops up even with responsible breeding. Manx syndrome includes spinal disorders like spina bifida (incomplete closure of the vertebrae over the spinal cord, leaving exposed nerve tissue), fused vertebrae, short or missing vertebrae, and deformed pelvic and/or sacral bones (4). Neurological problems such as lower-body paralysis or difficulty walking can occur (4). Cats with milder symptoms walk with the bunny-hop that led some to think Manx were cabbits (4). Inability to control the bowels and bladder and digestive problems are symptoms of Manx syndrome as well (4). Kittens with this disease are often euthanized.

Once again, the ethical question of whether we should be breeding Manx raises its ugly head. At one time, anyone that wanted a Manx had to have them shipped from the Isle of Man, where the cats just bred themselves. But supply inevitably outstripped demand, and here we are. I know I wouldn’t buy a Manx from a breeder, but I wouldn’t buy any cat from a breeder, so that’s easy for me to say. It seems objectively wrong to breed cats in the knowledge that some proportion will die in utero or die later because they’re so sick.

On the other hand, these are cats that occur in the wild, unlike some novelty breeds that were artificially selected to be that way. Does the natural-ness of the breed make it okay for us to breed more? I’m not a philosopher. You reach your own conclusions. But I will, and always will, say this: adopt, don’t shop! If you would like to adopt a Manx cat, check at your local shelter or Tailless Cat Rescue (http://www.taillesscatrescue.com/).

Fun Facts

  • Koko, the gorilla who learned American Sign Language, had a Manx as her first kitten. Koko named her All Ball because of her roundness.
  • The Manx was one of the founding breeds of the Cat Fanciers Association in 1906.
  • You can visit a Manx cat sanctuary on the Isle of Man: Mann Cat Sancuary (manncat.com).
  • Long-haired Manx are sometimes recognized as a separate breed, the Cymric (meaning “Welsh”).
  • Manx have been pictured on coins and stamps in their native Britain.

Works Cited

  1. Buckingham, K.J., et al. (2013). Multiple mutant T alleles cause haploinsufficiency of Brachyury and short tails in Manx cats. Mammalian Genome, 24(9-10), 400-408. DOI: 10.1007/s00335-013-9471-1
  2. Baraniuk, C. (2016, February 2). Why the cats on one British island have lost their tails. BBC Earth. link here.
  3. Adalsteinsson, S. (1980). Establishment of equilibrium for the dominant lethal gene for Manx taillessness in cats. Theoretical and Applied Genetics, 57, 49-53. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00277762
  4. Meggitt, J. Spina bifida in Manx kittens. The Nest. https://pets.thenest.com/spina-bifida-manx-kittens-7590.html.

Published April 24, 2020

Updated January 15, 2021