A recent discovery about wildcat hunting techniques has brought new light to a well-known behavior in domestic cats.
A group of scientists doing fieldwork in the Amazon forests of Brazil were recording the vocalizations of a group of pied tamarin monkeys, when a wildcat showed up and started making calls identical to those of the monkeys.
This was the first recorded instance of a wildcat in the Americas mimicking the calls of its prey.
Those of us that are cat people have known this for years. Some of the words and symbols we use in our verbalizations we use also come from cats. Ever said ow? And look at that question mark, remind you of anything? Your cat's tail when it is asking you for something perhaps?
My Bella, who grew up at the foot of Mt. Hood, makes squirrel sounds so well I have to look to see if it is her just staring at the ones outside or if one got in.
Of course my Siamese meowing like a baby is put into a whole new light when you think about this.