A “solid black” cat may be coal black, grayish black, or brownish black. Most solid-colored cats result from a recessive gene that suppresses the tabby pattern. Sometimes the tabby pattern is not completely suppressed; faint markings may appear in certain lights, even on a solid black cat.
1. Black cats are actually good luck in many cultures.
Not everyone believes that black cats are spooky or dangerous to be around. Many cultures celebrate black cats. In Japan, a black cat crossing your path is a good thing. Cats are considered lucky in Japan, and black cats are especially lucky for single women looking for love. Japanese maneki neko dolls are cats, and the black one is believed to ward off evil spirits. There is even a café in Himeji, Japan called Nekobiyaka that is dedicated entirely to black cats. It’s the only exclusively black cat café in the world, and the cats wear different colored bandanas so customers can tell them apart – truly a cat lover’s paradise.
All cats are associated with good fortune in Egypt, where the goddess Bastet was revered and pictured as a woman with a black cat’s head on her body. Cats were regarded as so sacred in ancient Egypt that it was a grave offense to kill one. Black cats are connected to Freya, the goddess of love and fertility in Norse mythology. Freya’s chariot is pulled by two black cats. These are only a handful of the numerous cultures that consider black cats to be good rather than evil forces.
Recessive Genes in Cat Hair
Genes can be dominant or recessive. Due to a possible recessive red gene, a very black cat may appear brown in the summertime sun. This is especially common in longhaired black cats. Additionally, you might have seen “smokes,” which are black cats with white roots. “.
It is thought that the tabby is the original color pattern of all domestic cats. According to this theory, the majority of cats today are recessive for tabby cats. But black cats and other solid-colored cats have an additional recessive gene that prevents the tabby pattern. If the tabby pattern is partially repressed, this may explain why a black cat with bright light markings may appear to have some tabby characteristics. The tabby “M” is the most distinctive of these.
3. Black cats may be more resistant to disease.
In a study by the National Institutes of Health, researchers discovered that the genetic mutation responsible for cats’ black fur is in the same family as a human gene involved in resistance to HIV. Scientists believe that the evolution of melanism (having black fur) in so many different species of cats indicates that there is a benefit to black fur in terms of survival, and that this benefit may be an increased resistance to disease. Since cats suffer from many of the same diseases as humans – such as cancer, feline AIDS, and diabetes – researchers are hopeful that studying black cat genetics may help in learning more about human resistance to disease.
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FAQ
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