WILD CATS

     Wild Cats, interesting members of the wild kingdome.
Their strength, speed, and cunning make them successful
hunters. Their size, power, and beauty make them wonderous
creatures.
     Cats of all sizes, colors, and shapes were worshiped in
the early history of the Egyptians. The Egyptians included
the cat in some of the art work they drew, painted, or
sculpted.  They were treated like gods. Egyptians admired the
cat it killed all rats and mice that plagued the town and
also helped rid the land of any other vermin.
     There are three types of cats: small cats, which can
purr large cats which can roar, but not purr, and the cheetah
the least cat - like member of the family. The cheetah yelps
like a dog and does not roar or purr like the rest of its
kind.
     Wild Cats belong to a large group of flesh eating
animals called carnivores. They adapt to their environment.
Their claws are all a little bit different. Their feet are
also different in size. Cats walk on their toes because they
have thick pads on their feet that make them move quietly.
They have five toes on their front paw  and four on their
hind. Their hearing is very good. They can hear sounds too
faint for our ears to hear. They can move their ears to tell
which way the sound is coming from. They have long sensitive
hair on their backs which helps them find their way. Their
eyes change with the sunlight. Their eyes look like a slit in
the day and at night their pupils are round. Cats have about
five hundred voluntary muscles. They control these muscles. A
cats strength comes from it's back thigh muscles. Those
muscles in the chest put the cat into a powerful sleek
running form. The color of cats make it invisible to their
prey. They have a good sense of smell. They mark their
hunting territory by scratching on trees or urinating. Most
cats hunt alone except for lions and cheetahs.
     Tigers are eight feet in length and can weigh as much as
five hundred pounds. It is a solitary animal that hunts at
night. Their tawny stripes provide a perfect hiding place in
the dense shadows of the forest.
     Leopards are smaller than a lion or a tiger. They also
hunt at night prowling some twenty to thirty miles. They have
a special liking for human flesh. Leopards are good swimmers.
The males are about seven feet long one quarter which is the
tail. This cat weighs one hundred to one hundred twenty five
pounds.
     Black Panthers or Black Leopards have emerald eyes, and
short fur that makes it look sleek and glossy. Black panthers
become ferocious when grown and untrustworthy.  Panthers are
not seen in shows because of this. They live in heavily
forested areas. Panthers jump on the back of their prey and
kill them. Then they eat the internal organs first.
     Bobcat or Bob Lynx live in forests and wild countries.
They are nocturnal and are seldom seen. They are brown
streaked and spotted with black. Their feet are large, and
the tail is short or bobbed (giving its name). Bobcats are
fierce and will attack an animal twice its size. They thrive
well in zoos and can live for twenty years.
     Cheetahs are seven feet long and can weigh as much as
one hundred fifty pounds. It has been known as the fastest
land animal on earth. It can reach a high speed of seventy
miles per hour (forty five miles per hour in two seconds).
Cheetahs can be found in Asia and Africa. The Asian cheetah
is spotted. the African cheetah is striped. It is three feet
at the shoulder. It can cover eight feet in a bound. The
cheetah takes five hundred yards to reach its full speed of
seventy miles per hour.
     So as we take a closer look at these wondrous creatures
we learn that they are not the cats we thought them to be.
They are different, yet alike in many ways. They are all out
for their own survival in the wild animal kingdom.